Abstract: The method of enriching PCP (pentachlorophenol) from aquatic
environment by solid phase extraction (SPE) was studied. Several factors
affecting the recoveries of PCP, including sample pH, eluting solvent, eluting
volume and flow rate of water sample, were optimized by orthogonal array design
(OAD). The optimized results were sample pH 4; eluting solvent, 100% methanol;
eluting solvent volume, 2 ml and flow rate of water sample, 4 ml/min. A
comparison is made between SPE and liquid-liquid extraction (LLE) method. The
recoveries of PCP were in the range of 87.6% – 133.6% and 79% – 120.3% for
SPE and LLE, respectively. Important advantages of the SPE compared with the
LLE include the short extraction time and reduced consumption of organic
solvents. SPE can replace LLE for isolating and concentrating PCP from water
samples.