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Analysis of trace levels of pesticides in rainwater using SPME and GC–tandem mass spectrometry

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Abstract

A multiresidue method using gas chromatography coupled to ion trap tandem mass spectrometry (GC–ITD–MS/MS) associated with solid phase microextraction (SPME) was developed for the analysis of 20 pesticides commonly used in the Alsace region in rainwater samples. Since the pesticides were expected to be present at very low concentrations and in complex matrices, the analytical method used was both highly selective and sensitive. Therefore, fibers coated with polyacrylate (PA), polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) and polydimethylsiloxane-divinylbenzene (PDMS-DVB) were tested, and the parameters affecting the precision and accuracy of the SPME method were investigated and optimized. These parameters include the type of fiber, the adsorption time, the effect of salt, and the extraction temperature. The PDMS fiber was the most polyvalent for the extractions of the different pesticides studied. Detection limits of between 5 and 500 ng L−1, depending on the compounds under study (except for those which could not be analyzed: captan and mevinphos), were obtained with this analytical procedure. This method was applied to the analysis of rainwater samples collected simultaneously on a weekly basis at one rural and one urban site between March 2002 and July 2003. While some of the 20 pesticides analyzed were constantly detected (such as lindane and atrazine), a strong temporal variability was observed for some of the others (including alachlor, metolachlor, atrazine).

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Acknowledgements

The authors want to thanks the “Region Alsace”, the “DRIRE Alsace” and the French Ministry of Ecology and Sustainable Development through the Primequal-2 program for their financial support. Anne Scheyer particularly thanks ADEME and “Région Alsace” for their financial support of her PhD.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre de Géochimie de la Surface, Laboratoire de Physico-Chimie de l’Atmosphère, UMR 7517 CNRS, Université Louis Pasteur, 1, rue Blessig, 67084, Strasbourg Cedex, France

    Anne Scheyer, Stéphane Morville, Philippe Mirabel & Maurice Millet

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  1. Anne Scheyer
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  2. Stéphane Morville
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  3. Philippe Mirabel
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  4. Maurice Millet
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Correspondence to Maurice Millet.

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Scheyer, A., Morville, S., Mirabel, P. et al. Analysis of trace levels of pesticides in rainwater using SPME and GC–tandem mass spectrometry. Anal Bioanal Chem 384, 475–487 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-005-0176-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-005-0176-5

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