Haloacetic acids (HAA) are disinfection byproducts when water is chlorinated to remove microbial content. The chlorine reacts with naturally occurring organic and inorganic matter in the water, such as decaying vegetation, to produce by-products that include HAAs. Five of the nine HAA species are currently regulated by the EPA as there might be an increased risk of cancer associated with long-term consumption of water containing levels of HAAs that exceed 0.6 mg/L. We describe an IC-MSMS method that provides separation of all nine HAAs addressed in the EPA methods (552.1, 552.2, and 552.3).

We investigate the effect of UHPLC mobile phases and operational parameters of a Orbitrap MS system used in the analysis of quaternary ammonium herbicides paraquat (PQ) and diquat (DQ). This includes separation optimization on a Thermo Scientific Acclaim Trinity Q1 column which was specifically designed for this application. Based on results obtained from this study, a method was developed for the unambiguous identification of PQ and DQ in environmental water samples with the ability to deliver analytical data with superior SNR, high precision and accuracy.

Phenolic compounds are of particular environmental importance due to their relatively high toxicity at low levels and their presence in environmental waters and organic matter, following degradation of a range of industrial products such as pesticides and herbicides, as well as naturally occurring humic substances and tannins. We demonstrate analysis optimization by variation of column chemistry, and the viability of reducing stationary phase particle size to significantly increase analysis speed, while maintaining separation parameters and increasing sensitivity.

Glyphosate is the most commonly used agricultural pesticide and the second most used pesticide around homes and gardens. In 2006, the US EPA set the minimum contaminant level (MCL) for glyphosate at 0.7 mg/L.6 Long-term exposure to glyphosate at levels above the MCL may cause kidney damage and reproductive defects in human biological systems. We describe an ion chromatography-mass spectrometry (IC-MS/MS) method to separate and quantitate glyphosate and AMPA without derivatization or preparation of complex mobile phases.

We developed a multi-residue LC-MS/MS screening method to detect 88 analytes using a single, automated experiment with a short chromatographic time scale. We demonstrate the utility of using different time segments and scan events, illustrate the large linear dynamic range for pesticide analysis in a multi-residue context, and show the absence of “cross-talk” between co-eluting components.