Photochemical transformation of pesticides in the atmosphere. Identification and quantification of the photoproducts

For the first time photochemical transformation products of a wide variety of pesticides discovered in the atmosphere. 28 photochemical reaction products, resulting from 12 pesticides, were identified and quantified in rainwater and air samples. Pesticides, for which several reaction products were found, had a similar concentration pattern of these products during the degradation experiment on the glass surface as compared to the atmospheric degradation. The ratio of transformation products to the parent pesticide in the air samples and in the degradation experiment indicated that the relative reactivity of the pesticides to each other can be estimated from the degradation rate on the glass surface. The data from these measurements and from the degradation experiments revealed characteristic photochemical pathways in correlation to the structure of the pesticides. Transformation products(...) showed a good correlation to the seasonal trend of the parent pesticide.