New approach applying a pet fish air pump in liquid-phase microextraction for the determination of Sudan dyes in food samples by HPLC.

A new approach applying a pet fish air pump is introduced to develop an extraction method, namely, air-pump-enhanced emulsion, followed by salt-assisted emulsion breaking based on solidified floating organic drop microextraction for the extraction and preconcentration of Sudan I-IV before high-performance liquid chromatography. The applicability of this method was successfully demonstrated by determination of these dyes in four chili products that include chili powder, chili oil, chili sauce, and chili paste. An enrichment factor of 62 was obtained only with a sample solution of 5 mL. A linear range of 0.5-2500 ng/mL was obtained with a limit of detection of 0.16-0.24 ng/mL and recovery of 90-110%. This method is superior to other liquid-liquid extraction methods, as is simple, rapid, environmental friendly, and its phase separation needs no centrifugation. It also needs no disperser solvent and requires less organic solvent, and satisfies the criteria to be called as a green extraction. Therefore, this facile extraction method can be successfully applied in the determination of Sudan dyes in food samples.