Method validation and dissipation kinetics of the novel HPPD-inhibiting herbicide cypyrafluone in winter wheat using QuEChERS method coupled with UPLC-MS/MS

Abstract

Cypyrafluone, a novel hydroxyphenylpyruvate dioxygenase (HPPD)-inhibiting herbicide, can successfully control a wide species of grass and broadleaf weed in wheat fields. However, the dissipation behaviors and terminal residues of cypyrafluone in wheat fields remain unclear. Here, a simple, accurate, and dependable approach for the analysis of cypyrafluone in soil, wheat plant, and grain was constructed utilizing an adapted QuEChERS extraction combined with UPLC-MS/MS. For accurate quantification, matrix-matched calibrations with high linearity (R2 >0.99) were employed to eliminate matrix interference. The method possessed high accuracy with recoveries in the range of 85.5%− 100.6% and precision with relative standard deviations < 14.3%, as well as high sensitivity with limits of quantifications of 0.001 mg kg−1 in the three matrixes. The dissipation kinetics and terminal residues of cypyrafluone were determined at two separate locations with different climates, soil types and cropping systems in 2018. The half-lives of cypyrafluone in soil and wheat plant were 1.47–1.55 d and 1.00–1.03 d, respectively. At harvest, the terminal residue values of cypyrafluone detected in wheat plants were 0–0.0025 mg kg−1 and 0.0044–0.0057 mg kg−1 at the recommended dose and 1.5 times of the recommended dose, respectively, and 0.0049 mg kg−1 of this herbicide was detected in grain at 1.5 times of the recommended dose, which was below the maximum residue limit (MRL). Finally, the risk quotient for cypyrafluone ranged from 0.33% to 0.81% (<1) for different age groups in China, indicating that the impact of residues from the cypyrafluone application on wheat was acceptable. These findings above will offer scientific guidelines for cypyrafluone application in the wheat field ecosystem.