Flow-through optosensing device implemented with photochemically-induced fluorescence for the rapid and simple screening of metsulfuron methyl in environmental waters.

Javier López Flores, María L Fernández de Córdova, Antonio Molina Díaz

Index: J. Environ. Monit. 11(5) , 1080-5, (2009)

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Abstract

This paper describes the implementation of a flow-injection solid phase spectroscopy (FI-SPS) system with photochemically induced fluorescence (PIF) in micellar medium for the determination of metsulfuron-methyl (MET). The micelles containing a strongly fluorescent photoproduct generated after UV irradiation of the herbicide are strongly retained on C(18) silica gel filling the flow-cell placed in the detection area and the photoproduct is monitored at 323 and 378 nm for excitation and emission wavelengths, respectively. The solid support is easily regenerated for subsequent sample injections (at least up to 500 cycles tested). The system was calibrated for two injection volumes, 300 and 1000 microl. The detection limits and relative standard deviations were 0.71 and 0.14 ng ml(-1), and 4.5 and 3.3% for each injection volume, respectively. The system shows a very high throughput, 34 (300 microl) and 36 (1000 microl) analysis per hour. The optosensor was successfully applied to the herbicide determination in river, well and irrigation waters (recovery ranges from 96.0 to 106.0%).