Magnetic beta cyclodextrin molecularly imprinted polymer for selective extraction of perfluorooctanoic acid from water

The association of PFOA with low concentrations and complex water matrices has made its direct quantification using sensitive analytical methods such as UHPLC-ESI-MS/MS challenging. This study used a magnetic beta-cyclodextrin-based molecularly imprinted polymer (TWAC-Fe₃O₄@β-CD-MIP) prepared via surface imprinting on magnetic tea waste activated carbon (TWAC-Fe₃O₄). Under optimal conditions, the method exhibited a linear range (17–5000 ng/L, R² = 0.9990) in real water, with LOD and LOQ of 8.6 ng/L and 29 ng/L, respectively. Precision was high, with intraday and interday %RSD of 2.1% and 3.7%. The adsorbent was reusable for three cycles while maintaining over 60% recovery. Spike recoveries in water samples ranged from 102 to 106% with %RSD <5%, confirming the method's accuracy. The imprinting factor was 5.57, and adsorption followed the Sips isotherm model. This study explored MIPs for PFOA determination in water.