Determination of Pyrethroid and Organophosphorus Insecticides in Indoor Air by Microwave-Assisted Extraction with Gas Chromatography/Mass Spectrometry

Abstract

The goal of this study was to evaluate the efficiency of microwave-assisted extraction for the recovery of pyrethroid and organophosphorus insecticides adsorbed on quartz fiber filters and C18 disks used for indoor air sampling. The extraction solvent, temperature, and time were optimized by spiking tests. The recoveries for the insecticides obtained by microwave-assisted extraction with acetone at 50 C for 5 min were between 71.9% and 119.2% with relative standard deviations between 0.3% and 9.3% at two spike levels (0.1 lg and 1.0 lg). The results of the microwave-assisted extraction under the validation conditions were comparable to those obtained by Soxhlet extraction, which was used as a reference technique. In a preliminary analysis, resmethrin and tetramethrin were determined in the indoor air of an apartment unit at concentrations of 7.8 ng/m 3 and 66.0 ng/m 3 , respectively, using the microwave-assisted extraction-based method with gas chromatography/mass spectrometry.