Determination of sodium monofluoroacetate (compound 1080) in tissues and baits as its benzyl ester by reaction-capillary gas chromatography.

A reaction-capillary gas-chromatographic procedure using photo-ionization (PID) or flame-ionization (FID) detection was developed for the determination of sodium monofluoroacetate (compound 1080), a pesticide, in tissues and baits. Fluoroacetic acid from tissue (1 g) and bait (10 g) extracts was first partitioned into ethyl acetate and then into 0.5 M benzyldimethylphenylammonium hydroxide. Benzylation was achieved by pyrolysis of the quaternary ammonium salt in the injection port. Chloroacetic acid was used as the internal standard. A linear relationship (r = 0.999) was observed between the peak area ratio of the substrate/internal standard and the fluoroacetic acid concentration. The detection limit for compound 1080 using the described analytical procedure, was 15 micrograms/kg with PID and 100 micrograms/kg with FID.