Evolution of solid-phase microextraction technology

The main objective of this contribution is to describe the development of t he concepts, techniques and devices associated with solid-phase microextrac tion, as a response to the evolution of understanding of the fundamental pr inciples behind this technique. The discussion begins with an historical pe rspective on the very early work conduced almost a decade ago. As new funda mental understanding about the functioning of the technology developed, new ways of constructing and using the SPME devices evolved. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.