Characterization and Application of Passive Samplers for Monitoring of Pesticides in Water

Five different water passive samplers were calibrated under laboratory conditions for measurement of 124 legacy and current used pesticides. This study provides a protocol for the passive sampler preparation, calibration, extraction method and instrumental analysis. Sampling rates (R_S) and passive sampler-water partition coefficients (K_PW) were calculated for silicone rubber, polar organic chemical integrative sampler POCIS-A, POCIS-B, SDB-RPS and C₁₈ disk. The uptake of the selected compounds depended on their physicochemical properties, i.e., silicone rubber showed a better uptake for more hydrophobic compounds (log octanol-water partition coefficient (K_OW) > 5.3), whereas POCIS-A, POCIS-B and SDB-RPS disk were more suitable for hydrophilic compounds (log K_OW < 0.70).