Identification and quantification of organochlorine pesticides by GC-ECD in environmental matrices

An analytical method for the determination of organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) (α-HCH, β-HCH, γ-HCH (Lindane), δ-HCH, Aldrin, Dieldrin, Endrin, DDT, DDD, DDE, Heptachlor, Chlordane, Endosulfan I and Endosulfan II) in environmental samples (wastewater, soil) uses liquid phase extraction and gas chromatography with electron capture detector (GC-ECD) quantification was developed. The analytes detection was performed on an Agilent 8890B GC system using a DB5 capillary column (60 m X 0.25 mm, 0.25 m) for the separation of the compounds. The structural and retention time confirmation for the studied compounds was done using a ThermoTSQ 8000 Evo GC-MS/MS system with the same type of column and similar operating parameters. The extraction from wastewater samples was done using hexane as non-polar solvent in a separatory funnel. For soil samples the extraction was carried out in 50 mL centrifuge tubes using acetone as polar solvent and hexane as non-polar solvent. The repeatability and the intermediate precision of the GC-ECD method were determined. The obtained values demonstrate that the method is accurate with RSD less than15% and can be successfully applied for studied matrices.