Analysis of carbendazim, benomyl, thiophanate methyl and 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid in fruits and vegetables after supercritical fluid extraction

Simple methods for the analysis of carbendazim, benomyl and thiophanate methyl in fruits and vegetables and of 2,4-D in citrus fruits are presented. Sample preparation involves supercritical fluid extraction with carbon dioxide and further analysis is performed without any additional clean-up by GC-MS after derivatisation or directly by HPLC-diode array detection. The SFE methods presented are clearly faster and more cost effective than traditional solvent based approaches. The recoveries, detection limits and repeatabilities achieved, meet the needs of tolerance level monitoring of these compounds in fruits and vegetables. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.