The influence of pH on sampler uptake for an improved configuration of the organic-diffusive gradients in thin films passive sampler.

Recent literature has demonstrated the utility of the organic-diffusive gradients in thin films (o-DGT) device as an effective passive sampler for polar organics in aquatic environments. Here, a new configuration comprising a polyacrylamide diffusive gel and Sepra™ ZT sorbent was developed and calibrated under multiple pH conditions. Linear uptake (r2 > 0.9) was observed at pH ≈ 5 for a suite of 31 pharmaceuticals and pesticides over 25 days, suitable for typical passive sampler deployments. At pH ≈ 8.5, linear uptake (r2 > 0.9) was observed for many of the same compounds. Comparisons of the uptake rates between the two pH experiments generally agreed (14% average relative error), with only 6 compounds exhibiting marked reduction with pH (e.g. sulfonamide antibiotics). These discrepancies may be explained by changes in analyte-sorbent interaction (H-bonding) due to speciation changes at varying pH. Samplers performed well in field evaluations conducted in an impacted river system, showing close agreement with the previously validated agarose/HLB o-DGT configuration deployed simultaneously. This work illustrates that polyacrylamide diffusive gels are a more robust and resistant outer-membrane material compared to agarose used in earlier o-DGT configurations. Sepra™ ZT binding gels served as an effective binding resin, offering a cost effective and commercially available sorbent.