Stereoselective quantification of triticonazole in vegetables by supercritical fluid chromatography

A highly fast analytical method though supercritical fluid chromatography (SFC) has been developed to quantify triticonazole enantiomers in cucumbers and tomatoes. Effects of organic modifier type and concentration on chiral separation and quantification of standard solution as well as matrix-matched standard solutions have been studied in detail. Among three organic modifiers, better separation of triticonazole racemate was achieved with 20% ethanol (v/v). The run time in SFC (ca 3min) with CO₂-ethanol (80:20, v/v) as the mobile phase was six-fold shorter than HPLC analysis (about 18min). Then, QuEChERS (quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged and safe) extraction procedure was used for triticonazole in vegetables. The residue analysis method was validated. Good linearity (R²≥0.9988) and recoveries (81.62-106.21%, RSD≤7.30%) for the two enantiomers were achieved. This developed method described herein is convenient and reliable for enantioselective detection of triticonazole in vegetables, which might provide additional information for reliable risk assessment of chiral pesticides.