Polyethersulfone potential in single and dual-phase passive samplers: A review

Single-phase passive samplers are often employed for the sampling of hydrophobic compounds in aqueous matrices. Recently, polyethersulfone (PES) has been proposed for integrative passive sampling of mid-polar compounds as an alternative to the more traditionally used polymers. However, dual-phase passive samplers demonstrate a higher affinity for polar to mid-polar compounds and much more work has been conducted with these types of samplers. In addition, for hydrophobic compounds, the more commonly used polymers appear to offer a more reliable quantification in single-phase applications. Polyethersulfone membranes are more often employed in dual-phase passive samplers: they are used in standard Polar Organic Chemical Integrative Samplers (POCIS), and often in Chemcatchers, as well as in organic Diffusive Gradients in Thin films (o-DGTs). Co-extracting the PES membranes of the dual-phase passive samplers along with the sorbent may help in better understanding the uptake kinetics to the receiving phases.