Determination Of Polar Pesticide Residues In Food Of Plant Origin, By And Automate QuPPe Solution

The QuEChERS (Quick-Easy-Cheap-Effective-Rugged-Safe) sample extraction method was developed for the determination of pesticide residues in agricultural commodities. Since development, QuEChERS has been applied for the extraction of many different classes of pesticides, with one exception, very polar non-QuEChERS-amenable pesticides. In 2008 at EPRW in Berlin the “Quick Method for Analysis of Residues of numerous Highly Polar Pesticides in Food of Plant Origin involving Simultaneous Extraction with Methanol and LC-MS/MS Determination” (QuPPe Method) was presented.

The aim of this project is to evaluate the performance and versatility of the AutoMate-Q40 for the extraction of highly polar pesticides using the QuPPe Method. Liquid Chromatography coupled to triple-quadrupole mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) was employed for the detection of highly polar pesticides in agricultural commodities. Quantification was based on matrix-matched calibration curves for each commodity. The AutoMate-Q40 streamlines the QuPPe Method while providing suitable analytical results falling in the method guidelines (range of 70-120% and RSD <20%) for all target compounds.