Extraction and reliable determination of acrylamide from thermally processed foods using ionic liquid-based ultrasound-assisted selective microextraction combined with spectrophotometry

ABSTRACT

Acrylamide (AAm) is a carcinogenic chemical that can form in thermally processed foods by the Maillard reaction of glucose with asparagine. AAm can easily be formed especially in frequently consumed chips and cereal-based foods depending on processing conditions. Considering these properties of AAm, a new, simple and green method is proposed for the extraction of AAm from thermally processed food samples. In this study, an ionic liquid (1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate, [Bmim][BF₄]) as extractant was used in the presence of a cationic phenazine group dye, 3,7-diamino-5-phenylphenazinium chloride (PSH⁺, phenosafranine) at pH 7.5 for the extraction of AAm as an ion-pair complex from selected samples. Under optimum conditions, the analytical features obtained for the proposed method were as follows; linear working range, the limits of detection (LOD, 3S_b/m) and quantification (LOQ, 10S_b/m), preconcentration factor, sensitivity enhancement factor, sample volume and recovery% were 2.2–350 µg kg⁻¹, 0.7 µg kg⁻¹, 2.3 µg kg⁻¹, 120, 95, 60 mL and 94.1–102.7%, respectively. The validity of the method was tested by analysis of two certified reference materials (CRMs) and intra-day and inter-day precision studies. Finally, the method was successfully applied to the determination of AAm levels in thermally processed foods using the standard addition method.

GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT

KEYWORDS:

• Acrylamide
• thermally processed foods
• microextraction
• spectrophotometry

Highlights

• Phenosafranine was used for the ion-pair extraction of AAm from processed foods at pH 7.5.

• The fast and efficient extraction of AAm was supported by ultrasound energy.

• The AAm at trace levels was enriched by using IL as extractant.

• The detection limit of the method (0.7 µg kg⁻¹) is low.

• The validity of the method was verified by analysis of two CRMs.

Acknowledgments

This study has been supported by Cumhuriyet University Scientific Research Projects Commission as the research projects with the F-520 code.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Cumhuriyet University Scientific Research; [F-520].