Investigating non-targeted screening and accurate quantitation of trace surface water contaminants using high-resolution mass spectrometry

The human impact on surface water is a growing concern and the chemical surveying of contaminants including pharmaceuticals and pesticides is currently lacking. Neonicotinoids in particular, are among the most widely used insecticides that have prompted environmental concern and require monitoring. Chemical contaminants in environmental water samples are commonly analyzed by targeted tandem mass spectrometry. However, this requires a prior knowledge of the contaminants in the area of interest. Here, surface water samples were screened by utilizing optimized data-independent acquisition (DIA) methods and the spectra were databased for future retrospective analysis. This circumvents the requirement for target analytes prior to analysis and allows for improved method development. Methods were produced for the improved screening of contaminants using DIA, for the quantitation of targeted compounds, and to allow for the high-throughput analysis of neonicotinoids. Quantitation was completed for the detected compounds at various surface water sites and wastewater treatment plants