LCMS
More information
WebinarsAbout usContact usTerms of use
LabRulez s.r.o. All rights reserved. Content available under a CC BY-SA 4.0 Attribution-ShareAlike

An Overview of Multi-residue Pesticide Testing

Others | 2022 | WatersInstrumentation
GC/MSD, GC/MS/MS, Sample Preparation, GC/QQQ, GC/API/MS, Consumables, Software, LC/MS, LC/MS/MS, LC/QQQ
Industries
Environmental, Food & Agriculture
Manufacturer
Waters

Summary

Importance of the Topic


Pesticide residues in food represent a major public health and trade concern. Regulations worldwide mandate monitoring to ensure compliance with maximum residue limits (MRLs) and to protect consumers.

Objectives and Study Overview


This document reviews current best practices in multi-residue pesticide analysis, focusing on robust sample preparation workflows, advanced chromatographic and mass spectrometric methods, and data processing strategies.

Methodology and Instrumentation


Multi-residue workflows combine:
  • QuEChERS extraction with acetonitrile partitioning and buffered salts.
  • dSPE clean-up using sorbents such as PSA, C18, and GCB.
  • SPE pass-through cartridges (e.g., Oasis PRiME HLB) for lipid removal.
  • Automated liquid handling (Andrew+ pipetting robot) for matrix-matched standard preparation.

Analytical Techniques:
  • GC-MS/MS with EI or soft ionization (APGC) for molecular ions.
  • UPLC-MS/MS employing tandem quadrupole detection for LC-amenable pesticides.

Key Instrumentation:
  • Waters ACQUITY UPLC Premier
  • Xevo TQ-Absolute and TQ-XS Mass Spectrometers
  • APGC Ion Source
  • MS Quan software with Exception Focused Review

Key Results and Discussion


QuEChERS remains the most versatile extraction approach, reducing solvent use and enabling both GC and LC analyses from a single extract. dSPE sorbent mixtures must be tailored to commodity matrices to balance clean-up and analyte recovery. SPE pass-through offers an alternative for high-lipid samples. Automated liquid handling improves reproducibility and frees analysts for higher value tasks.
APGC GC-MS/MS enhances sensitivity and selectivity by preserving molecular ions. UPLC-MS/MS accelerates analysis, halves run times, and supports expanded analyte lists. Post-injection mixing and loop dilution techniques resolve early-eluting peak distortion. Matrix effects are mitigated through matrix-matched calibration and assessed during validation. Advanced software streamlines data review and decision making.

Benefits and Practical Applications


  • High throughput with reduced sample preparation time.
  • Lower organic solvent consumption and disposal costs.
  • Improved sensitivity to meet global MRLs.
  • Consistent quality control via automated workflows and software rules.

Future Trends and Opportunities


Emerging directions include greener extraction protocols, high-resolution mass spectrometry for non-target screening, AI-driven data interpretation, fully integrated automation, and enhanced ionization technologies to broaden analyte coverage and increase laboratory efficiency.

Conclusion


Modern multi-residue pesticide testing combines streamlined sample preparation, sensitive GC-MS/MS and LC-MS/MS methodologies, and intelligent data processing to deliver reliable, cost-effective, and regulatory-compliant results for food safety laboratories worldwide.

Reference


1. Anastassiades et al. J AOAC Int. 86(2):412-31 (2003)
2. Lozano et al. Food Chem. 192:668–681 (2016)
3. Pihlström et al. Anal Bioanal Chem. 389(6):1773-89 (2007)
4. SANTE 11312/2021: Analytical Quality Control and Method Validation

Content was automatically generated from an orignal PDF document using AI and may contain inaccuracies.

Downloadable PDF for viewing
 

Similar PDF

Toggle
Analysis of Pesticide Residues in Spinach using Phenomenex roQ™ QuEChERS AOAC Kits by LC/MS/MS and GC/MS
TN-0051 APPLICATIONS Analysis of Pesticide Residues in Spinach using Phenomenex roQ™ QuEChERS AOAC Kits by LC/MS/MS and GC/MS Sueki H. Leung, Monika M. Kansal, Carl Sanchez, Art Dixon, Michael Rummel, and Erica Pike Phenomenex, Inc., 411 Madrid Ave., Torrance, CA…
Key words
roq, roqsecurityguard, securityguardquechers, quechersphenomenex, phenomenexdspe, dspecartridges, cartridgesphases, phasesrecovery, recoveryapplications, applicationstriphenylphosphate, triphenylphosphatekre, krebifenthrine, bifenthrinespinach, spinachkresoxim, kresoximpsa
MULTIRESIDUE PESTICIDE ANALYSIS IN FRUITAND VEGETABLE COMMODITIES USING BOTH UPLC AND APGC ON A SINGLE MASS SPECTROMETER PLATFORM
MULTIRESIDUE PESTICIDE ANALYSIS IN FRUIT AND VEGETABLE COMMODITIES USING BOTH UPLC AND APGC ON A SINGLE MASS SPECTROMETER PLATFORM Kari Organtini1, Eimear McCall2, Simon Hird2, Gareth Cleland1 and Narendra Meruva1 1 Waters Corporation, 34 Maple St, Milford, MA 01757 Waters…
Key words
apgc, apgcresidue, residuepesticide, pesticideuplc, uplcmulti, multikale, kaleorganonitrogen, organonitrogenquanpedia, quanpediaatmospheric, atmosphericradar, radarorganophosphorus, organophosphoruscommodities, commoditiesboth, bothtandem, tandemionisation
Analytical Challenges for Pesticide Residue Analysis in Food: Sample Preparation, Processing, Extraction and Cleanup
W h i te Pap er 72048 Analytical Challenges for Pesticide Residue Analysis in Food: Sample Preparation, Processing, Extraction and Cleanup Richard J. Fussell, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Hemel Hempstead, UK Key Words Background Cleanup, Food, GC Orbitrap, GC-MS, LC-MS, LC…
Key words
extraction, extractionpesticides, pesticidesquechers, quecherscleanup, cleanuppesticide, pesticidesolvent, solventliquid, liquidresidues, residuesmethod, methodethyl, ethylresidue, residueacetate, acetateaccelerated, acceleratedextractives, extractivessample
Determination of Pesticide Residues in Cucumber Using GC-MS/MS With APGC™ After Extraction and Clean-up Using QuEChERS
Application Note Determination of Pesticide Residues in Cucumber Using GC-MS/MS With APGC™ After Extraction and Clean-up Using QuEChERS Janitha De-Alwis, Stuart Adams, Simon Hird Waters Corporation Abstract Reliable analytical methods are needed for detection, quantification, and identification of hundreds of…
Key words
apgc, apgccucumber, cucumberpesticide, pesticideresidues, residuesquechers, quechersclean, cleandetermination, determinationusing, usingextraction, extractionafter, aftermethod, methodsensitivity, sensitivityanalytes, analytestesting, testingfood
Other projects
GCMS
ICPMS
Follow us
More information
WebinarsAbout usContact usTerms of use
LabRulez s.r.o. All rights reserved. Content available under a CC BY-SA 4.0 Attribution-ShareAlike