Molecularly Imprinted Polymers for Sample Preparation

The sample treatment/preparation steps involve any operation and manipulation of the samples prior to instrumental determination of the target compounds [1−3]. This is a critical step in the analytical process because the concentration of target analytes in the samples is frequently too low for quantification. Thus, the first step of the preparation protocol involves the exhaustive extraction/concentration of the analytes from the matrix. Commonly, the initial step is nonselective and the obtained extracts require subsequent purification before final instrumental determination. Purification or clean-up treatments are usually carried out off-line, which negatively affects throughput and analysis cost in terms of both time and reagent consumption, makes the procedures susceptible to contamination and degradation of the analytes, and often results in the generation of relatively large amounts of waste. Appropriate selection and optimisation of the sample preparation procedure is a key aspect within the analytical process which can greatly affect the reliability and the accuracy of the results [1, 4].