Easy and fast extraction methods to determine organochlorine pesticides in sewage sludge, soil, and water samples...

Organochlorine pesticides present in sewage sludge can contaminate soil and water when they are used as either fertilizer or agricultural soil conditioner. In this study, the technique solid-liquid extraction with low temperature purification was optimized and validated for determination of ten organochlorine pesticides in sewage sludge and soil samples. Liquid-liquid extraction with low temperature purification was also validated for the same compounds in water. Analyses were performed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry operating in the selective ion monitoring mode. After optimization, the methods showed recoveries between 70% and 115% with relative standard deviation lower than 13% for all target analytes in the three matrices. The linearity was demonstrated in the range of 20 to 70 µg L^-1, 0.5 to 60 µg L^-1, and 3 to 13 µg L^-1, for sludge, soil, and acetonitrile, respectively. The limit of quantification ranged between 2 and 40 µg kg^-1, 1 and 6 µg kg^-1, and 0.5 µg L^-1 for sludge, soil, and water, respectively. The methods were used in the study of pesticide lixiviation carried out in a poly vinyl chlorine column filled with soil, which had its surface layer mixed with sludge. The results showed that pesticides are not leached into soil, part of them is adsorbed by the sewage sludge (4-40%), and most pesticides are lost by volatilization.