GC–MS characterization of contemporary pesticides in PM10 of Valencia Region, Spain

Pesticides in the inhalable fraction of particulate matter (PM10) should be well tracked in order to contribute information to future exposure assessment in individuals of the general public. A total of 40 current-used pesticides and metabolites were searched for in ambient air samples collected from January through December 2010. The samples were taken from one remote, one urban and three rural sites in Valencia Region (Spain) and analyzed using liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry in tandem (LC-MS/MS). In the PM10 fraction 17 pesticides and metabolites were detected overall, two of them currently banned (carbofuran and omethoate, although the latter is a metabolite of the pe…