Validation a solid-phase extraction-HPLC method for determining the migration behaviour of five aromatic amines from packaging bags into seafood simulants

Abstract

The simultaneous determination of five aromatic amines and their potential migration from packaging bags into seafood simulants were investigated. A validated HPLC method was developed for the separation and qualification of five aromatic amines in seafood simulants. By combining solid-phase extraction (SPE), these amines were efficiently separated on a Halo C₁₈ column (150 × 4.6 mm i.d., 2.7 μm, particle size) using a mobile phase of methanol/phosphate buffer solution (5 mmol l⁻¹, pH 6.9) with gradient elution. The linear range was 0.1–10.0 mg l⁻¹; the absolute recoveries ranged from 85.3% to 98.4%; and the limits of detection of the five aromatic amines were between 0.015 and 0.08 mg l⁻¹. In this work the migration profile of aromatic amines from black plastic bags was investigated at temperatures of 4°C with water, 3% acetic acid solution, 10% ethanol solution and 50% ethanol solution as seafood simulants, respectively. The migration of the five aromatic amines under different conditions showed that residual o-methoxyaniline, p-chloroaniline, aniline and 2,6-dimethylaniline leaching from black plastic bags increased with incubation time. No detectable 3,3´-dimethylbenzidine was found to leach from the bags.

Keywords:

• aromatic amine
• HPLC
• migration
• seafood simulant
• black plastic bag