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BfR data for LC-MS/MS analysis

On this page the BfR provides relevant detection parameters and supporting information for the residue analysis with LC-MS/MS as well as for the drinking water method.

As an alternative to the download of all files, BfR offers a CD free of charge containing all information provided in the aforementioned archives. If you are interested please send an e-mail with your complete address to poststelle@bfr.bund.de. (Subject: Anforderung kostenloser CD mit Datensammlung für die Rückstandsanalyse mit LC-MS/MS, Ansprechpartnerin: FGr 65, Dr. Angelika Steinborn)

Periodically, new information will be added to this site. Please note that BfR cannot take a guarantee for the correctness of all data. Comments which help us to improve this compilation are welcome.

Your contact person at BfR is Dr. Angelika Steinborn, e-mails can be sent to: angelika.steinborn@bfr.bund.de.

BfR data for the residue analysis with LC-MS/MS

More than 800 pesticides are used world-wide. In the past, residues of a large number of these pesticides in food and feed could only be analysed using costly methods. The much more effective modern multiresidue-methods utilizeliquid chromatography combined with tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) to detect a large number of substances simultaneously in one analysis. Multiple Reaction Monitoring (MRM) is the preferred scan type.

BfR data for ESI-MS/MS detection

For further development of LC-MS/MS techniques and to support official food control, BfR provides relevant detection parameters and supporting information for many pesticides. The list of pesticides for which information is available currently contains 639 pesticide active substances and metabolites.

• List of pesticides for which methodological data is available at present (96.6 KB).

Furthermore, BfR provides the following information for these substances:

• Complete acquisition parameter sets for MRM detection with an API 2000 mass spectrometer (Applied Biosystems) after electrospray ionization (ESI) in positive and negative mode. This collection also contains product ion spectra (often for heavy isotopes such as 37Cl or 34S) and proposals for the structure of the two product ions selected for MRM detection.
  - Complete acquisition parameter sets for positive electrospray part 1 for A-K.zip (39.1 MB)
  - Complete acquisition parameter sets for positive electrospray part 2 for L-Z.zip (27.5 MB)
  - Complete acquisition parameter sets for negative electrospray.zip (8.6 MB)
  - Example from the acquisition parameter sets for API 2000 mass spectrometers (123.2 KB)

• Mass spectra for product ions at three different collision energies for all pesticides (for confirmation of positive findings).
  -  Library of product ion spectra for pesticide residue analysis (46.0 MB)
  -  Example for product ion spectra (95.5 KB)

Drinking water method

Based on these data, the BfR developed for 300 pesticides a complete multi residue method for the detection of pesticides in drinking water using an API 4000 mass spectrometer (Applied Biosystems). Many pesticides can be analysed at concentrations of 0.1 µg/l (drinking water limit value) by this method. Details of the method have been published (Greulich and Alder, 2008). The complete results of the method development are available from "Fast multi residue screening of 300 pesticides in drinking water (22.3 MB)".

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