Direct analysis of naphthenic acids in produced water and crude oil by NH2-surface-modified wooden-tip electrospray ionization mass spectrometry

Abstract

This work describes the surface coating of wooden toothpicks with amino groups (NH₂) for electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (MS) analysis of naphthenic acids (NAs) in produced water samples and crude oil fractions. NH₂ was introduced into the cellulosic material through a silanization reaction using aminopropyltriethoxysilane. An NH₂-modified toothpick was inserted into the analyte extraction sample and was subsequently used as an electrospray emitter for MS analysis. The extraction conditions were optimized by analyzing NAs (benzoic acid, 1-naphthoic acid, decanoic acid, 3,5-dimethyladamantane-1-carboxylic acid, and 3,5-dimethyladamantane-1-acetic acid) in pure water, and the best condition was using 5 min of extraction time with the samples under agitation. Modified and unmodified wooden toothpicks were compared, and the intensities of all NAs were higher when using the modified substrates than when using the unmodified ones. Limit of detection (LOD), limit of quantification (LOQ), linearity, precision, and recovery were determined by analyzing decanoic acid in seawater samples. The LOD and LOQ were 2 and 5 μg mL⁻¹, respectively, and a linear correlation (R² = 0.9927) was obtained with concentrations ranging from 5 to 250 μg mL⁻¹. Precision values ranged from 6 to 13% and recoveries from 89 to 106%. The technique was also employed to analyze three produced water samples, in which decanoic acid was semi-quantified, and the concentrations ranged from 10 to 13 μg mL⁻¹. High abundances of acidic compounds of class O2 with DBEs (double bond equivalents) ranging from 1 to 3 and carbon numbers going from 8 to 12 were detected in the produced water samples. The results suggest that the modification of wooden toothpicks with NH₂ might offer a significant advancement in the knowledge of cheap substrates that can improve the sensitivity of analysis of NAs in water samples.