Analysis of carbamate pesticides and their metabolites in water by solid phase extraction and liquid chromatography:: A review

Carbamates are an important, broad class of pesticides that are used extensively as insecticides, fungicides, and herbicides. Sensitive, economical, fast, and environmental friendly procedures are constantly developed to investigate their residues in water samples. The state of the art in methods based on solid phase extraction (SPE) and liquid chromatographic determination are examined here. SPE is presently the most extended method for preconcentration of carbamate pesticide residues and their transformation products from water samples. Advantages and limitations of alkyl bonded-silica, and polymeric sorbents, carbon, and mixed-phases in off-line and on-line procedures are discussed. Because some carbamates and transformation products are thermolabile, multiresidue determination is usually carried out by liquid chromatographic techniques. The most interesting reported analytical conditions are presented in a tabular form. Finally, an overview to the levels found in different environmental waters is done; concentrations were usually detected in the sub mug l(-1) order.