Determination of triazamate in apples, peas and Brussels sprouts using high-performance liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry.

A rapid method was developed to allow the analysis of triazamate and the hydrolysis product triazamate acid in apples, peas and Brussels sprouts. The procedure was based on acidified methanol extraction with quantification by liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry detection. The detection limit, based on the lowest calibration level, was 0.005 mg kg(-1). The method was validated at 0.05 and 0.01 mg kg(-1), and was used for screening of triazamate acid in the surveillance of apples as part of the UK pesticide monitoring programme. Calibrations were linear over the range 0.004-0.080 microg ml(-1) (equivalent to 0.005-0.11 mg kg(-1)), with a minimum correlation coefficient of 0.95. The detection response showed some matrix-dependent variation. Mean recoveries were in the range 70-108% with associated per cent coefficient of variations of less than 20%.