Rapid Determination of Residual Pesticides and Polyaromatic Hydrocarbons in Different Environmental Samples by HPLC

Abstract

Nowadays agriculture represents most important economic activity. Agricultural pesticides that are deliberately used to escalate crop yield unfortunately are endowed with many latent and insidious adverse effects. Pesticides and poly-aromatic hydrocarbons are identified worldwide as toxic environmental pollutants that persist in the environment and bioaccumulates in the food chain. This study was thus designed for the analysis of pesticide residues and Polyaromatic hydrocarbons in fruits and vegetables, water and soil. This work was done with the objective to develop an analytical method for selectively and sensitively detecting pesticides and polyaromatic hydrocarbons in different environmental matrices. For this purpose samples of selected fruits, vegetables, soil and water collected from agricultural land were analyzed to determine the residues of selected organochlorine pesticides (Bifenthrin, Imidacloprid, Difenoconazole) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (Anthracene , Phenanthrene) by High Pressure Liquid Chromatography. The selected method beautifully allowed the qualitative and quantitative determination of Pesticides and Polyaromatic hydrocarbons in selected samples. Results of study revealed the presence of Anthracene in a concentration ranges from 0.0655-31.632mg/kg, Difenoconazole in concentration ranges from 0.03-18.604mg/kg and Bifenthrin in concentration ranges from 0.024-11.74 mg/kg in different study samples which were exceeding maximum residue limits (MRL) set by Codex Alimentarius Commission.