Rapid UV–Vis screening of phenolic compounds in surface waters and comparison with confirmatory hplc‑pda analysis

Kleva  Shpati; Ardit  Shehi; Aida  Dama; Yury  Devitte; Edlira  Kaloshi; Aurora  Napuce; Ederina  Haxhia; Erjona  Sheqeri; Aurel Nuro

doi:10.62638/ZasMat1349

Authors

Kleva Shpati Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Albanian University Author https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3213-1158
Ardit Shehi Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Albanian University Author https://orcid.org/0009-0006-7617-5562
Aida Dama Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Albanian University Author https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1993-3420
Yury Devitte Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Mathematics and Science, Jyväskylä University, Finland Author
Edlira Kaloshi Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Albanian University Author https://orcid.org/0009-0001-4648-9468
Aurora Napuce Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Albanian University Author https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6014-1708
Ederina Haxhia Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Albanian University Author https://orcid.org/0009-0005-3230-3297
Erjona Sheqeri Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Albanian University Author https://orcid.org/0009-0000-7428-0971
Aurel Nuro Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Tirana Author https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1875-2430

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.62638/ZasMat1349

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the occurrence of phenolic compounds in surface water samples from the main rivers in the Tirana area and to evaluate a rapid UV–Vis spectrophotometric approach as a screening technique. Phenolic compounds are recognized environmental pollutants originating from both natural and anthropogenic sources. The absorption spectrum of phenol was recorded and the wavelength of maximum absorbance (270.1 nm) was selected for spectrophotometric measurements. Method performance was evaluated in terms of linearity, repeatability, reproducibility and recovery following ISO 17025 recommendations. Because several organic substances present in natural waters may also absorb in the 250–280 nm region, the UV–Vis technique was applied as a rapid screening method for UV‑absorbing aromatic compounds potentially related to phenolic substances. To evaluate selectivity, selected samples were additionally analyzed using a High‑Performance Liquid Chromatography system with photodiode array detection (HPLC‑PDA) after pressurized solvent extraction (PSE). Comparison between the two techniques showed that UV–Vis results were generally 1.5–2 times higher than HPLC values, indicating the contribution of other UV‑absorbing organic compounds present in the river water matrix. The results show that the studied rivers are influenced by urban and anthropogenic activities and contain detectable levels of aromatic organic compounds. The UV–Vis method can be used as a rapid and inexpensive screening tool, while confirmatory analysis with more selective techniques such as HPLC is recommended for accurate phenol determination.

Keywords:

Phenol, UV-VIS technique, Water analysis, Water quality, Method building/evaluation

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