Abstract
Three spectrophotometric methods were developed for the microdetermination of decamethrin in insecticidal formulations and in water. The methods are based on the hydrolysis of decamethrin with methanolic KOH to 3-phenoxybenzaldehyde; condensation of the hydrolysis product with 2,4- dinitrophenylhydrazine (2,4-DNPH), 4-nitrophenylhydrazine (4-NPH), or 2,4,6-trinitrophenylhydrazine (2,4,6-TNPH) under alkaline conditions; and measurement of the condensates at the absorption maxima of 444,535, and 480 nm, respectively. The relationship between absorbance and concentration was linear in the ranges of 0.1–5.0 μg/mL, 0.5–7.0 μg/mL and 0.1–5.5 μg/mL for 2,4-DNPH, 4-NPH, and 2,4,6-TNPH, respectively. The methods are sufficiently sensitive and can be used to detect decamethrin at concentrations as low as 0.1 μg/mL.