Microemulsion electrokinetic chromatography: an application for the simultaneous determination of suspected fragrance allergens in rinse-off products.

A mixture of 18 neutral UV-active compounds with different characteristics of polarity was determined by capillary electrophoresis using a pseudostationary phase constituted by a microemulsion. The test analytes were volatile fragrance compounds, included in a list of 24 chemicals classified as suspected allergens according to Directive 2003/15/CE. The considered compounds were detected at 195 nm and p-anisaldehyde was chosen as internal standard. The background electrolyte consisted of a standard microemulsion made of 90.95% 10mM borax buffer, pH 9.2, 1.05% n-heptane, 8.00% SDS/n-butanol in 1:2 ratio, to which 40 mM methyl-β-cyclodextrin was added. Temperature and voltage were set at 20 °C and 25 kV, respectively. These experimental conditions allowed separation of the compounds to be obtained in about 20 min. The method was applied to real samples made up of rinse-off scented products. The results obtained using the standard microemulsion as pseudostationary phase showed its high resolution power, capable of effectively separating a complex mixture of analytes. Microemulsion electrokinetic chromatography was confirmed to have a great potential for different analytical challenges, holding up the possibility of using this technique as a good and complementary alternative to HPLC methods for routine analysis.