Application of solid-phase microextraction to the study of the photochemical behaviour of five priority pesticides: “on-fiber” and aqueous photodegradation

Solid-phase microextraction (SPME) is applied to study the photochemical degradation of five priority pesticides: atrazine, alachlor, aldrin, dieldrin, endrin. Analyses were carried out by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry. The possibility of studying the photochemical degradation of the target compounds in solid-phase microextraction fibers, “photo-SPME”, is evaluated employing different SPME coatings. The target analytes were extracted from aqueous solutions using different commercial coatings and then, the fibers were exposed to UV light. Results indicated that on-fiber photodegradation takes place in a considerably major extent using PDMS coating for an irradiation time of 30 min. On-fiber photodegradation kinetics of each analyte were determined by UV irradiation of the PDMS for different times. A large number of photoproducts were generated and they were tentatively identified by means of their mass spectra and with the aid of literature. In this way, main photodegradation mechanisms could be postulated. Aqueous photodegradation studies followed by SPME were performed and compared with photo-SPME. All the photoproducts detected in the aqueous experiments were previously found in the photo-SPME experiments. This study shows the potential of photo-SPME to evaluate the photo-transformation of organic pollutants.