Determination of organic acids in urine by solid phase microextraction and gas chromatography-ion trap tandem mass spectrometry previous "in sample" derivatisation with trimethyloxonium tetrafluoroborate

A method for the determination of the organic acids directly in the urine employing derivatization with trimethyloxonium tetrafluoroborate as a methylating agent and sequential extraction by head space and direct immersion/solid phase microextraction is reported. Furoic acid, hippuric acid, methylhippuric acid, mandelic acid, phenylglyoxylic acid and trans, trans muconic acid contained in urine and proposed by the American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists as biological exposure indices were determined after a fast and economically convenient preparation step and sensitive gas chromatography– ion trap–mass spectrometry/tandem mass spectrometry analysis. Urine is rather a complex sample and hence the acquisition method required specific GC-MS instrumentation capable of supporting the changeover, fully automated during a single chromatographic separation, from mass to tandem mass spectrometry and both chemical and electron ionization modes. The automation of the analytical method provides a number of advantages, including reduced analysis time for both routine analysis and method development, and greater reproducibility. The equilibrium and kinetics of this substances vs head space/direct immersionsolid phase microextraction were investigated and evaluated theoretically.