Analysis of 118 pesticides in tobacco after extraction with the modified QuEChRS method by LC-MS-MS

A liquid chromatography-tandem quadrupole mass spectrometry (LC-MS-MS) multi-residue method for the simultaneous target analysis of a wide range of pesticides in tobacco has been developed. Gradient elution has been used in conjunction with positive mode electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry to detect up to 118 pesticides in tobacco. The recoveries obtained for each pesticide ranged between 70 and 118% at two spiked concentration levels. Good linear relationships were observed with correlation coefficients r(2) > 0.992 for all analytes. The established method was successfully applied to the determination of pesticide residues in real tobacco samples in order to validate the suitability for routine analysis.