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Activated sludge treatment systems rely on a microbial consortium structurally organized in bioflocs to treat pollutants present in wastewater. The treatment process efficiency in these systems can be severely affected by toxic chemicals present in the influent wastewater. The effects of chemical toxins at the treatment process level are determined by the mechanisms that occur at the biofloc and cellular levels, which can be physical, chemical and physiological in nature. We believe that the overall process effects of chemical toxins on activated sludge systems likely result from a combination of all three types of mechanisms and that they are interdependent, in the sense that specific bacterial stress response mechanisms (physiological mechanisms that protect the cell from toxic conditions) may lead to physical/chemical alterations at the floc level, and vice-versa. Ultimately, understanding the mechanisms that occur at the floc and metabolic scales will help to design more robust and efficient treatment systems, and to develop tools to prevent and mitigate the effects of toxic chemicals on activated sludge systems. In this research, we set out to establish the link between the effects of chemical toxins on activated sludge cultures at the process, floc and metabolic scales. First, the effects of shock loads of different toxic sources (1-chloro-2,4-dinitrobenzene (CDNB), cadmium, 1-octanol, 2,4-dinitrophenol (DNP), weakly complexed cyanide, pH 5, 9 and 11, and high ammonia levels) on activated sludge process parameters (biomass growth, respiration rate, flocculation, chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal, dewaterability and settleability) were studied. For all chemical shocks except ammonia and pH, concentrations that caused 15, 25 and 50% respiration inhibition were used to provide a single pulse chemical shock to sequencing batch reactor (SBR) systems containing a nitrifying (10 day solids retention time – SRT) and a non-nitrifying (2 day SRT) biomass. We found that cadmium and pH 11 shocks were the conditions that most detrimentally affected all the processes, followed by CDNB. DNP and cyanide primarily led to effects on respiration, while pH 5, 9, octanol and various ammonia concentrations did not impact the treatment process to a significant extent. Additionally, there was a clear correlation between biomass deflocculation and increases in the effluent soluble COD of the shocked reactors for different chemical sources. With this study, we were able to establish a source-effect matrix linking classes of chemical toxins to their potential inhibitory effects on activated sludge processes, thereby contributing to a better understanding of the potential effects of toxic industrial discharges into biological treatment systems. The findings of the first phase of the research, specifically the correlation between chemical-induced deflocculation and increases in soluble COD, served as a motivation to explore the role of floc structure in the response of activated sludge cultures to toxic compounds, and to conduct a more in-depth analysis of the supernatant (soluble phase) of toxin-exposed activated sludge. In one study, we evaluated the respiration inhibition induced by octanol, cadmium, N-ethylmaleimide (NEM), cyanide and DNP on activated sludge biomasses with different floc structures but similar physiological characteristics, with the objective of assessing the role of the extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) in flocs as a protection barrier against chemical toxins. Mechanical shearing was applied to fresh mixed liquor to produce biomasses with different floc structure properties and specific oxygen uptake rate assays were conducted on the sheared and unsheared mixed liquors. The results showed that the respiration inhibition by octanol and cadmium was more intense in sheared mixed liquor (which had less EPS material available in the flocs and smaller floc sizes) than in the unsheared biomass. Conversely, the respiration inhibition induced by NEM and cyanide was similar for the different mixed liquors tested. These results allowed us to conclude that the EPS matrix functions as a protective barrier for the bacteria inside activated sludge flocs to chemicals that it has the potential to interact with, such as hydrophobic (octanol) and positively-charged (cadmium) compounds, but that the toxicity response for soluble, hydrophilic toxins (NEM and cyanide) is not significantly influenced by the presence of the polymer matrix. In the final study that was conducted, we used the metabolomics-based technique metabolic footprinting to assess if the soluble phase of mixed liquor exposed to different chemical toxins exhibited a toxin-specific biochemical composition. We hypothesized that toxin-specific effects could be distinguished through footprint patterns of those soluble samples. The impact of cadmium, DNP and NEM shock loads on the composition of the soluble fraction of activated sludge mixed liquor was analyzed by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS). The results from this study indicated that there was a significant release of biomolecules (proteins, carbohydrates and humic acids) from the floc structure into the bulk liquid due to chemical stress. More importantly, using a multivariate statistical method called discriminant function analysis with genetic algorithm variable selection (GA-DFA), we were able to show that the soluble phase samples from the different reactors could be differentiated, thereby indicating that the footprints generated by LC-MS were different for the four conditions tested and, therefore, toxin-specific. These footprints, thus, contain information about specific biomolecular differences between the samples, and we found that only a limited number of m/z (mass to charge) ratios from the mass spectra data was needed to differentiate between the control and each chemical toxin-derived samples. In addition, since the experiments were conducted with mixed liquor from four distinct wastewater treatment plants, the discriminating m/z ratios may potentially be used as universal stress biomarkers. These results are promising and indicate that LC-MS may be used for the discovery of activated sludge stress biomarkers, to allow the development of new toxin detection technologies for prevention of upset events in activated sludge systems. / Ph. D.

Résumé : La pollution de l'environnement est devenue un problème mondial majeur. Le développement rapide des industries de procédés conduit à une augmentation constante des quantités d'eaux usées et des liqueurs contaminées rejetées. Les acides carboxyliques représentent une part importante de la charge organique des polluants dans les eaux usées et dans les solutions aqueuses industrielles. Une technologie efficace et respectueuse de l'environnement est donc requise pour réduire les effets négatifs de l'industrialisation sur l'environnement et pour éliminer les polluants des eaux usées et des liqueurs industrielles contaminées. Le plasma thermique submergé à courant continu (CC) est l'une des technologies proposées pour éliminer les contaminants des liquides et des solutions. Le réacteur au plasma thermique submergé à courant continu est un nouveau réacteur dans lequel le contact direct entre le plasma et la solution est établi. Une caractéristique importante du plasma thermique type CC est le gaz de plasma. Selon le type du gaz plasmagène, les plasmas thermiques CC présentent différents taux de décomposition, d’espèces réactives, d’enthalpies, de conductivités thermiques, et de temps de vie des électrodes. Parmi les différentes torches des plasmas thermiques CC, la torche à plasma thermique à mélange gazeux à base de CO[indice inférieur 2], récemment inventée, présente une amélioration très significative de la performance, c'est-à-dire une enthalpie plasmatique et une conductivité thermique élevées par rapport à celles des gaz de plasma concurrents. Une approche principalement expérimentale a permis d’étudier la faisabilité et le mécanisme de décomposition de l'acide carboxylique à haut poids moléculaire dans des solutions via les différents plasmas thermique submergés à CC. L'acide sébacique, un acide carboxylique à haut poids moléculaire a été choisi comme représentant de contaminant de type organique dans la liqueur Bayer. Deux différentes torches de plasma, incluant la torche à plasma oxygène et air ainsi que la torche à plasma CO[indice inférieur 2]/CH[indice inférieur 4] nouvellement conçues ont été utilisées. L'effet des différentes conditions de fonctionnement en incluant le temps de traitement, le pH initial de la solution, et la pression du réacteur, ainsi que le rôle des agents oxydants tels que le H[indice inférieur 2]O[indice inférieur 2], ont été étudiés sur la décomposition de l'acide sébacique. Pour identifier le rôle des différents gaz de plasma et des conditions opérationnelles sur le mécanisme de décomposition et sur les produits intermédiaires, une caractérisation qualitative et quantitative a été réalisée sur les solutions traitées avec la méthode de chromatographie ionique couplée à la spectrométrie de masse (IC/MS). L'effet thermochimique des gaz de plasma sur la décomposition de l’acide sébacique et sur les produits intermédiaires a également été étudié. À travers les différents essais réalisés dans cette étude, il a été montré pour la première fois que la décomposition de l'acide carboxylique de poids moléculaire élevé est réalisable avec le plasma thermique submergé en utilisant des gaz de plasmas différents. Le taux de décomposition d'acide sébacique lors de l’utilisation d’un plasma thermique à oxygène en milieu basique est plus élevé par rapport aux autres plasmas thermiques (air, et CO[indice inférieur 2]/CH[indice inférieur 4]) en mode submergé. Il a été constaté que cela est dû principalement à sa forte concentration en espèces oxydantes telles que l’ozone. Il a été observé que la décomposition de l'acide sébacique en milieu basique par l’utilisation de plasma d’oxygène et de plasma à air se produit par un mécanisme d'oxydation consécutif jusqu'à la production finale d'acides di-carboxyliques de plus faibles poids moléculaires et de CO[indice inférieur 2] (dissous dans la solution sous la forme de carbone inorganique). Il a été trouvé aussi pour la première fois que le plasma thermique submergé CO[indice inférieur 2]/CH[indice inférieur 4], peut décomposer l'acide carboxylique de poids moléculaire élevé sur la base d’un mécanisme séquentiel de photo-oxydation en raison de sa forte intensité de rayonnement ultraviolet. Le plasma de CO[indice inférieur 2]/CH[indice inférieur 4] a montré une vitesse de décomposition supérieure dans le milieu neutre. Par contre, en milieu basique, le plasma d'oxygène et le plasma d'air ont montré une vitesse de décomposition plus élevée. Il a également été montré que l'ajout d'H[indice inférieur 2]O[indice inférieur 2] en milieu basique a augmenté la vitesse de décomposition de l'acide sébacique avec le plasma CO[indice inférieur 2]/CH[indice inférieur 4] jusqu’à la même vitesse de décomposition que le plasma d'oxygène dû à une plus grande intensité de rayonnement UV du plasma de CO[indice inférieur 2] en comparaison avec celle du plasma d'oxygène. Dans une perspective plus générale, à travers différentes expériences, il a été montré que le plasma de CO[indice inférieur 2]/CH[indice inférieur 4] peut offrir une grande vitesse de décomposition des acides carboxyliques de poids moléculaire élevés dans un milieu acide et neutre, et également en milieu basique en présence de peroxyde d'hydrogène. Cela permettra le traitement des contaminants dans une grande variété de conditions de solution à l'aide de plasma du gaz CO[indice inférieur 2]. Les résultats de cette thèse aident à mieux comprendre la décomposition des contaminants organiques à hauts poids moléculaires dans les solutions utilisant les plasmas thermiques submergés. De plus, ces résultats proposent une application potentielle pour la torche à plasma de CO[indice inférieur 2] pour le traitement des eaux usées. // Abstract : Environmental pollution has become a major global problem. Rapid development of process industries leads to a constant increase in amounts of wastewater and contaminated industrial process liquors. Carboxylic acids represent a significant portion of the organic load of pollutant in wastewater and industrial aqueous solutions. An effective and environmentally friendly technology is therefore required to reduce the negative effects of industrialization on the environment and subsequently remove pollutants from wastewater and contaminated industrial liquors. DC (Direct Current) submerged thermal plasma is one of the proposed technologies for removing contaminants from liquids and solutions. DC submerged thermal plasma reactor is a novel reactor in which the direct contact between plasma and solution is established. An important characteristic of typical DC thermal plasma is the plasma gas. Depending on the type of plasma gas, DC thermal plasmas present different decomposition rates, reactive species, enthalpy, thermal conductivity, and electrode life time. Among different DC thermal plasma torches, the recently invented CO[subscript 2]-based gas mixture thermal plasma torch exhibits a very significant performance improvement, i.e. high plasma enthalpy and high thermal conductivity in comparison with competing plasma gases. In this study, by a mainly experimental approach, the feasibility and decomposition mechanism of high molecular weight carboxylic acid in solution via different DC submerged thermal plasmas has been investigated. Sebacic acid, a high molecular weight carboxylic acid, was selected as a representative of a typical organic contaminant in Bayer liquor. Two different DC plasma torches have been used including oxygen DC plasma torch and the newly designed CO[subscript 2]/CH[subscript 4] plasma torch. The effect of different operational conditions including treatment time, initial solution pH, and the reactor pressure as well as the role of oxidizing agents such as H[subscript 2]O[subscript 2], were investigated on the decomposition of sebacic acid. To identify the role of different plasma gases and operational conditions on the decomposition mechanism and its intermediate products, qualitative and quantitative characterization was done on the treated solutions with IC/MS (Ion Chromatography/Mass Spectrometry) method. The thermochemical effect of the plasma gases on the decomposition of sebacic acid and its intermediate products was also investigated. Through different experiments, it was shown for the first time that decomposition of high molecular weight carboxylic acid is feasible with submerged thermal plasma by using different plasma gases. The decomposition rate of sebacic acid by using oxygen thermal plasma in basic medium was higher compared with other thermal plasmas (air, and CO[subscript 2]/CH[subscript 4]) in submerged mode. It was found that the higher decomposition rate with oxygen plasma is mostly due to its high concentration of oxidant species such as ozone. The decomposition of sebacic acid in basic medium with oxygen and air plasma was revealed to occur with a consecutive oxidation mechanism up to the final production of the lowest molecular weight di-carboxylic acids and CO[subscript 2] gas (dissolved in solution in the form of inorganic carbon). It was found for the first time that the CO[subscript 2]/CH[subscript 4] submerged thermal plasma can decompose well high molecular weight carboxylic acid based on a sequential photo-oxidation mechanism due to its high ultraviolet (UV) radiation intensity. The CO[subscript 2]/CH[subscript 4] plasma showed higher decomposition rate in neutral medium, however oxygen and air plasma showed higher increased the sebacic acid decomposition rate with the CO[subscript 2]/CH[subscript 4] plasma up to the same decomposition rate of the oxygen plasma due to higher UV radiation intensity of the CO[subscript 2] plasma than that of the oxygen plasma. In a more general perspective, through different experiments, it was shown that CO[subscript 2]/CH[subscript 4] plasma can offer high decomposition rate for high molecular weight carboxylic acids in acidic and neutral medium and also in basic medium in the presence of hydrogen peroxide. This will allow using plasma for treatment of contaminants in a wide variety of solution conditions by using CO[subscript 2] gas. The findings of this thesis therefore will shed light on the decomposition of large organic contaminants in solutions with submerged thermal plasmas. Also, it provides a potential application for CO[subscript 2] plasma torch in wastewater treatment.

The focus of this study was analytical investigations of Egyptian paintings, mainly Coptic icons and Islamic wooden ceilings, dating from 1300-1900 using multi-instrumental techniques. Twenty three Coptic icons and three wooden ceilings dated from different periods and painted by different painters in case of icons were examined. The materials used including pigments, media, varnishes, ground layers and gold layers. The surface stratigraphy of paint samples, their layered structured and the composition of materials used in each layer were analysed. Variations in painting techniques, pigments palettes, paint media and varnishes applied in Egyptian paintings according to painters, time and type of paintings were revealed. A total of twenty-eight organic and inorganic pigments were identified in this study, of which nine have never been previously included as a part of the Egyptian pigment palettes, namely; smalt, lapis lazuli, indigo, pararealgar, Prussian blue, chrome yellow, barium yellow, barium white and hydromagnesite. The identification of hydromagnesite, which has never been to date considered as a pigment either in Egypt or elsewhere and the identification of smalt from the mid-14th century, whose reported earliest large scale use was in the 16th century. Two types of resins were identified as a constituent of the oil/resin varnish applied on Coptic icons of which Venice turpentine has been identified for the first time as an ingredient of Egyptian varnishes. The identification of mosaic gold in an 18th C. icon, a novel usage of dammar resin and the multilayered structure of the white ground layers were revealed.

Distinguishing animal fats from plant oils in archaeological residues is not straightforward. Characteristic plant sterols, such as beta-sitosterol, are often missing in archaeological samples and specific biomarkers do not exist for most plant fats. Identification is usually based on a range of characteristics such as fatty acid ratios, all of which indicate that a plant oil may be present, none of which uniquely distinguish plant oils from other fats. Degradation and dissolution during burial alter fatty acid ratios and remove short-chain fatty acids, resulting in degraded plant oils with similar fatty acid profiles to other degraded fats. Compound-specific stable isotope analysis of delta(13)C(18:0) and delta(13)C(16:0), carried out by gas chromatography/combustion/isotope ratio mass spectrometry (GC/C/IRMS), has provided a means of distinguishing fish oils, dairy fats, ruminant and non-ruminant adipose fats, but plant oils are rarely included in these analyses. For modern plant oils where C(18:1) is abundant, delta(13)C(18:1) and delta(13)C(16:0) are usually measured. These results cannot be compared with archaeological data or data from other modern reference fats where delta(13)C(18:0) and delta(13)C(16:0) are measured, as C(18:0) and C(18:1) are formed by different processes resulting in different isotopic values. Eight samples of six modern plant oils were saponified, releasing sufficient C(18:0) to measure the isotopic values, which were plotted against delta(13)C(16:0). The isotopic values for these oils, with one exception, formed a tight cluster between ruminant and non-ruminant animal fats. This result complicates the interpretation of mixed fatty residues in geographical areas where both animal fats and plant oils were in use.

This Master's thesis deals with determination of nucleobases in formamide samples (pure or catalyzed form) after their initiation by high-power density energy events. The theoretical part states the reader to the problems of prebiotic chemistry and acquaints him with the various theories of the origin of the nucleobases. The experimental part deals with the analysis of the samples initiated by Laser System PALS, which was used for the simulation high-power density energy events. For the identification and determination of the final products of laser plasma initiated chemical reactions in the gaseous phase of the samples was used the Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy. The liquid part of the samples and the nucleobases in this part were analyzed by the gas chromatography with the mass detection.

<p>LC-MS of protein drugs requires new ideas in bonded phase design rather than adapting bonded phases from the realm of small-molecule drugs. The polymer-shell bonded phase is designed to interact with larger molecules and to shield proteins from the silica substrate. The particles consist of a core of solid silica and a shell of dense polymer brush. The polymer layer is thick enough to protect the protein from interactions with silanols to reduce peak tailing. The polymer contains multiple functional groups that introduce more selectivity. This design gives unprecedented LC resolution and MS sensitivity. Our group has developed polymer shell bonded phases for hydrophobic interaction chromatography (HIC-MS) of antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography (HILIC-MS) of glycoproteins, and reversed-phase liquid chromatography (RPLC-MS) of monoclonal antibodies. Since HIC is not in-line compatible with MS due to the high salt levels, it is laborious to identify the constituents of HIC peaks. An MS-compatible alternative to HIC is reported here: native reversed phase liquid chromatography (nRPLC). This employs a mobile phase 50 mM ammonium acetate for high sensitivity in MS, and elution with a gradient of water/isopropanol. The nRPLC-MS data show that all ADC species, ranging from drug-to-antibody ratios of 1 to 8, remained intact and native on the column. As we adapt this concept to intact proteins, we find that lysozyme and α-chymotrypsinogen A are both eluted in their native conformations. We also use the polymer-shell concept to resolve IgG1 free thiol variants by RPLC-MS with 0.5% formic acid. Since there are always other variants besides the intended ones, the need for high MS sensitivity is desired to distinguish subtle mass change between disulfide bond and free thiols. Overall, MS sensitivity increases 10X relative while all of the thiol variants are well resolved by the polymethylmethacrylate bonded phase.</p>

Foi desenvolvido um método para determinar canabinóides (canabidiol, canabinol e delta-9-tetraidrocanabinol) no cabelo. Uma amostra de 10mg foi descontaminada com diclorometano, seguida de digestão alcalina, microextração em fase sólida por headspace (HS-SPME) e analisada por espectrometria de massa associada à cromatografia em fase gasosa (GC/MS). Os limites de detecção e de quantificação foram de 0,07 e 0,12 ng/mg, respectivamente, para todos canabinóides estudados. O método demonstrou ser simples, rápido, preciso e linear no intervalo de 0,12 a 12 ng/mg (r2 > 0,98). Amostras de cabelo de 8 usuários de Cannabis foram coletadas de pacientes provenientes de uma clínica dependentes pela equipe médica. O método mostrou-se eficiente em amostras de cabelos de usuários que faziam uso da droga pelo menos 10 vezes por semana. / A method was to develop to detect cannabinoids (cannabidiol, cannabinol and delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol) in hair. A 10 mg of hair sample was descontaminated by dichloromethane followed by alkalin digestion, headspace solid-phase microextraction technique (HS-SPME) and analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (CG/MS). The detection and quantitation limits were 0,07 and 0,12ng/mg respectively for all studied cannabinoids. The method proved to be simple, fast, precise and linear at the range of 0,12 to 12ng/mg (r2 > 0,98). Eight hair samples of Cannabis user were collected from patients at admittance from a dependence clinic by clinical staff. The method showed efficient in samples of users who use the drug at least 10 fold a week.

O Bisfenol A (BPA, acrônimo da língua inglesa - bisphenol A) é uma substância utilizada na fabricação de embalagens alimentícias e resinas odontológicas. Sua toxicidade deve-se ao fato de que, como disruptor endócrino, afeta o sistema reprodutor, cardiovascular, neuro-endócrino e pode apresentar potencial carcinogênico. Em métodos bioanalíticos, o preparo da amostra tem sido requerido para aumentar a seletividade e sensibilidade analítica, através da remoção dos interferentes da amostra biológica e concentração dos analitos, quase sempre presentes em níveis de traços. A microextração em ponteiras (DPX, acrônimo das iniciais em língua inglesa - Disposable Pipette Extraction), baseada no equilíbrio de sorção do soluto com a fase extratora, consiste em uma ponteira padrão de micropipeta modificada, na qual o sorvente está contido livremente entre dois filtros, permitindo rápida extração do analito em diferentes matrizes complexas. Os polímeros de impressão molecular (MIP acrônimo das iniciais em língua inglesa - Molecularly Imprinted Polymer) consistem em uma rede polimérica tridimensional que possui cavidades seletivas para o reconhecimento molecular do analito ou de substâncias de estrutura análoga. Essa rede polimérica é sintetizada ao redor da substância molde (analito), e a cavidade seletiva é formada após a remoção do molde. As vantagens do processo sol-gel para a síntese do MIP são o controle do tamanho e forma das partículas, ajuste da hidrofobicidade e alta estabilidade térmica. No presente trabalho, o MIP foi sintetizado e utilizado como sorvente para a técnica DPX para a determinação de bisfenol A em amostras de urina por cromatografia em fase gasosa acoplada à espectrometria de massas (GC-MS, acrônimo das iniciais em língua inglesa - Gas Chromatography coupled to Mass Spectrometry). O MIP foi sintetizado pela via sol-gel utilizando aminopropiltrietoxisilano (APTES) como mônomero funcional e tetraetil-orto-silicato (TEOS) como reagente de ligação cruzada. Como molde foram avaliados o BPA para o MIP, e o tetrabromobisfenol A (TBBPA) para o polímero molecularmente impresso com molécula análoga ao analito (DMIP, acrônimo das iniciais em língua inglesa - Dummy Molecularly Imprinted Polymer). Para avaliar a seletividade do MIP, o polímero não impresso (NIP, acrônimo das iniciais em língua inglesa - Non-imprinted Polymer) foi sintetizado seguindo o mesmo procedimento de síntese do MIP com exceção da adição da molécula molde. Apesar de a capacidade de sorção do MIP ser ligeiramente maior, o DMIP foi selecionado como sorvente para minimizar o efeito de memória. O DMIP foi caracterizado por microscopia eletrônica de varredura (MEV) e por espectroscopia vibracional na região do infravermelho por transformada de Fourier (FTIR, acrônico das inicias em língua inglesa - Fourier Transform Infrared). Os parâmetros da técnica DPX, tais como, o tempo de equilíbrio de sorção entre a amostra e o sorvente e condições de dessorção foram otimizadas por técnicas quimiométricas. A robustez do DMIP sintetizado via sol-gel foi comprovada pela reutilização deste sorvente por mais de 100 vezes, sem perda da eficiência da extração. O método desenvolvido DPX/GC-MS apresentou linearidade na faixa de 50 a 500 ng mL-1, precisão com CV (coeficientes de variação) entre 4 e 14% e de exatidão com valores de erro padrão relativo (EPR) de -13,6 a 12,3%. O método de referência utilizando a extração líquido-líquido e GC-MS (LLE/GC-MS), faixa de linearidade de 5 a 50 ng mL-1, foi desenvolvido e validado. Embora o método DPX/GC-MS inovador, quando comparado ao LLE/GC-MS, tenha apresentado maior limite de quantificação, apresentou as seguintes vantagens: simplicidade, rapidez e utilização de menores volumes de amostra e de solventes orgânicos na etapa do preparo da amostra / Bisphenol A (BPA) is widely used in food package and dental resins manufacturing. Its toxicity is due to its endocrine disruptor activity that affects the reproductive, cardiovascular, neurological system and may have carcinogenic potential. In bioanalytical methods the sample preparation has been required to increase the selectivity and analytical sensibility by removing the interfering from the biological matrix and concentration of the analytes that are in trace levels most of the times. The disposable pipette extraction (DPX) is based on sorption equilibrium of the analyte between the sample and the extraction phase. It consists in a pipette that contais the sorbent phase freely between two filters. Then, the extraction of the solute from the complex sample occurs quickly. Molecularly imprinted polymer is a tridimensional polimeric network that has selectivity cavities that can recognize an analyte or a substance with a similar structure. The polimeric network is synthesized around to a template molecule and after removing this template, a selective cavity is formed. The advantages of the sol-gel process for the synthesis of MIP are the control of the size and shape of the particles, hydrophobicity adjustment and high thermal stability. In the present study MIP was synthesized and used as sorbent to DPX method for determination of BPA in urine samples by gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Sol-gel methodoly was used to synthesize the polymers. Aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES) was used as a functional monomer and tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) as crosslinking reagent. BPA and tetrabromobisphenol A (TBBPA) were evaluated as template to the synthesis of MIP and dummy molecularly imprinted polymer (DMIP) which is a molecularly imprinted polymer that uses a template structurally similar to the analyte. The non-imprinted polymer (NIP) was synthesized following the same procedure that MIP, except for the addition of template. It was made to verify the improvement of selectivity and sensibility of molecularly imprinted polymers. Although the sorption capacity of the MIP is slightly larger, DMIP has been selected as a sorbent in order to minimize the memory effect. The DMIP was characterized by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The parameters of DPX, such as time sorption equilibrium between the sample and the sorbent and desorption conditions were optimized by chemometrics. Robustness of DMIP sinthesized by sol-gel process was evidenciated for the reuse of DMIP for more than a 100 times. The developed method DPX/GC-MS showed linearity on the range from 50 to 500 ng ml-1, precision values with coefficient of variation (CV) betweeen 4 and 14% and accuracy with relative standard deviation values (RSD) from -13.6 to 12.3%. The reference method using liquid- liquid extraction and GC-MS (LLE/GC-MS) was developed and validated, showing linearity from 0.5 to 50 ng mL-1. Althout the innovative method DPX/GC-MS has showed limit of quantification larger than LLE/GC-MS, it presents the following advantages: simplicity, rapidy and utilization of smaller volumes of organic solvents on the sample preparation step