REVIEW ARTICLE Developments in hollow fiber based liquid-phase microextraction: principles and applications Mahnaz Ghambarian & Yadollah Yamini & Ali Esrafili Received: 22 October 2011 / Accepted: 28 January 2012 # Springer-Verlag 2012 Abstract Hollow fiber liquid-phase microextraction (HF- LPME) offers an efficient alternative to classical techniques for sample preparation and preconcentration. Features in- clude high selectivity, good enrichment factors, and im- proved possibilities for automation. HP-LPME relies on the extraction of target analytes from aqueous samples into a supported liquid membrane (SLM) sustained in the pores of the wall of a porous hollow fiber, and then into an acceptor phase (that can be aqueous or organic) in the lumen of the hollow fiber. After extraction, the acceptor solution is directly subjected to a chemical analysis. HP-LPME can be performed in either the 2- or 3-phases mode. In the 2-phase mode, the organic solvent is present both in the porous wall and inside the lumen of the hollow fiber. In the 3-phase mode, the acceptor phase can be aqueous and this results in a conventional 3-phase system compatible with HPLC or capillary electrophoresis. Alternatively, the acceptor solu- tion is organic and this represents a 3-phase extraction system with two immiscible organic solvents that is com- patible with all common analytical instruments. In HP- LPME methods based on the use of SLMs, the mass transfer occurs by passive diffusion, and high extraction yields as well as efficient extraction kinetics are obtained by applying a pH gradient. In addition, active transport can be performed by using carrier or applying an electrical potential across the SLM. Due to high analyte preconcentration, excellent sam- ple clean-up, and low consumption of organic solvent, HF- LPME has a large application potential in areas such as drug analysis and environmental monitoring. This review focuses on the fundamentals of extraction principles, technical implementations, and future trends in HF-LPME. Keywords Hollow fiber membrane . Liquid-phase microextraction . Sample preparation . Environmental and pharmaceutical applications Abbreviations NPOE 2-Nitrophenyl octylether ANOVA Analysis of variance CE Capillary electrophoresis CPA Chlorophenoxy acid DEHP Di-(2-ethylhexyl) phosphate DAD Diode array detector DI Direct immersion extraction EME Electromembrane extraction ECD Electron capture detector ET-AAS Electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry ETV-ICP-MS Electrothermal vaporization inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry ESI Electrospray ionization FAMEs Fatty acid methyl esters FAs Fatty acids FID Flame ionization detector FPD Flame photometric detector FTD Flame thermionic detection FIA Flow injection analysis FLD Fluorescence detector GC Gas chromatography HAAs Haloacetic acids Y. Yamini (*) : A. Esrafili Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Sciences, Tarbiat Modares University, P.O. Box 14115-175, Tehran, Iran e-mail: yyamini@modares.ac.ir M. Ghambarian Iranian Research and Development Center for Chemical Industries, (ACECR), Tehran, Iran Microchim Acta DOI 10.1007/s00604-012-0773-x