Zeolite Linde Type L as micro-solid phase extraction sorbent for the high performance liquid chromatography determination of ochratoxin A in coffee and cereal

Zeolite Linde Type L (LTL) crystals with different length, diameter and particle size (nanosized LTL, rod LTL, cylinder LTL and needle LTL) were synthesized, characterized and were used as sorbent in the micro-solid phase extraction of ochratoxin A (OTA) before the high performance liquid chromatography detection. Under the optimized conditions, the detection limits of OTA for coffee and cereal were 0.09 ng g−1 and 0.03 ng g−1, respectively, while the quantification limits were 0.28 ng g−1 and 0.08 ng g−1, respectively. The recoveries of OTA of coffee and cereal spiked at 0.5, 10 and 25 ng g−1 ranged from 91.7 to 101.0%. The proposed method was applied to forty-five samples of coffee and cereal. The presence of OTA was found in twenty-five samples, ranging from 0.28 to 9.33 ng g−1.

► Linde Type L (LTL) zeolites with different sizes were prepared and characterized. ► LTL were used in μ-solid phase extraction for the determination of ochratoxin A. ► Cylinder LTL offers comparable sensitivity to the molecularly imprinted polymer. ► This “green-nature” method is an option for OTA determination in food.