Validated method for the determination of phenyl urea and triazine herbicides in potable and groundwater by LC/MS using selective ion monitoring meets UK Drinking Water regulations
Agilent Technologies Europe has announced a validated liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC/MS) method for detecting selected phenyl urea and triazine herbicides in drinking water and groundwater.
Using this method, chemists from Agilent and Anglian Water Services Laboratories in Huntingdon, UK, detected 16 herbicides at very low limits, considerably below 0.1mg/l - the prescribed concentration for individual pesticides specified by the Water Supply (Water Quality) Regulations in the UK. Extensively used as weed control agents, the phenyl urea and triazine herbicides are detected in drinking water and other environmental samples.
They can cause adverse health and environmental effects if not properly monitored.
Standard detection methods include liquid chromatography with ultraviolet diode array detection (LC/UV-Dad) for both classes of herbicides, but more typically gas chromatography (GC) is used for the triazines.
Phenyl urea herbicides are thermally unstable and are unsuitable for GC analysis.
LC/MS can be used to detect both herbicide types and offers greater compound identification and confirmation capabilities than UV-Dad alone.
Researchers analysed 16 herbicides with this method, including five phenyl urea herbicides, eight triazine herbicides, carbetamide, chloridazon and metamitron.
The analysis was performed using an Agilent 1100 series LC/MS system with an atmospheric pressure electrospray ionisation source in both positive and negative ion modes.
The method provided very low limits of detection (.01mg/l or lower) for all the tested herbicides.
The results of the analysis met all the performance requirements set by the UK Drinking Water Inspectorate for standard deviation, bias and total error for each herbicide.
Further information is available by requesting Agilent application note 'Validated method for the determination of phenyl urea and triazine herbicides in potable and groundwater by LC/MS using selective ion monitoring', Agilent publication number 5988-8595EN.
