Determination of glufosinate-ammonium residue in wheat and soil by ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry

The worldwide use of glufosinate-ammonium has dramatically increased, but concern over its impact on plants and soil is also increasing. With the aim of clarifying whether the application of glufosinate-ammonium will generate residue in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) and soil, ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) was used to detect wheat plants, grains, and soil. Under experimental conditions, no residue of glufosinate-ammonium was detected in wheat plants and grains during each growth period. The residual level of glufosinate decreased gradually with the increment of soil layer during the same reproductive period. In the same soil layer, the sequence of glufosinate residues in the reproductive period were wintering, recovering, jointing, and heading stage. The residues of glufosinate after 2.0 times applied amount was significantly greater than the 1.0 times applied amount. During the wintering period, the residuals after 2.0 times application of glufosinate were 1.50 and 28.27 times higher than 1.0 times application in the field and soil column experiment, respectively, in the 0–20 cm soil layer. No residue of glufosinate was detected in the different soil layers of each treatment during the flowering, filling, and maturation stages of wheat. The residues of glufosinate-ammonium in wheat and soil were far less than 0.2 ng kg−1 in all treatments. It shows that the application of glufosinate-ammonium is safe for wheat field soil and the next crop under the spraying rate of this experiment.