Feasibility of capillary liquid chromatography-microchip-atmospheric pressure photoionization-mass spectrometry for pesticide analysis in tomato.

A new and sensitive analytical method, using capillary liquid chromatography (capLC) with a microfabricated heated nebulizer chip for atmospheric pressure photoionization and tandem mass spectrometry (μAPPI-MS/MS), was developed for the analysis of selected carbamate pesticides in a tomato matrix. The performance of the instrumental method was evaluated, using seven pesticides, namely oxamyl, methomyl, aldicarb, carbofuran, pirimicarb, thiocarb, and ditalimfos. The limits of detection achieved with the capLC-μAPPI-MS/MS method in the positive ion mode were low, ranging from 0.25 ng mL(-1) for pirimicarb to 5 ng mL(-1) for oxamyl and methomyl, corresponding to 5 and 0.25 μg kg(-1) for tomato samples, respectively, which are clearly below the maximum residue limits for them in fruits and vegetables. The repeatability of the instrumental method ranged from 2.9 to 13.9% (RSD) at a low (0.05 μg mL(-1)) concentration level. An adequate linearity (r(2)=0.984-0.999) at a concentration range from 0.005 to 5.0 μg mL(-1) was observed for all pesticides. The results obtained show that the capLC-μAPPI-MS/MS method developed could be used for the analysis of selected pesticides from tomato.