Membrane-assisted solvent extraction was applied for the determination of different classes of compounds in water, having K(o/w) (octanol-water partition coefficient) values between 10(1) (aniline) and 10(8) (methyl stearate), by means of experimental designs. Four solvents were investigated--propan-2-ol, ethyl acetate, diisopropyl ether and cyclohexane--as well as extraction time, temperature, salt impact, pH and methanol addition. The best choice was diisopropyl ether, 50 degrees C, 30 min and an addition of 3 g of sodium chloride at pH 2 for polar compounds. The relative standard deviation (n = 3) was found in the range from 5 to 17%. Recoveries ranged between 34 and 100%. Membrane-assisted solvent extraction was successfully applied to a fast screening method dedicated to an unknown wastewater sample.