Desorption of pyrethroids from suspended solids

Pyrethroid insecticides have been widely detected in sediments at concentrations that can cause toxicity to aquatic organisms. Desorption rates play an important role in determining the bioavailability of hydrophobic organic compounds, such as pyrethroids, because these compounds are more likely to be sorbed to solids in the environment, and times to reach sorptive equilibrium can be long. In the present study, sequential Tenax desorption experiments were performed with three sorbents, three aging times, and four pyrethroids. A biphasic rate model was fit to the desorption data with r 2  > 0.99, and the rapid and slow compartment desorption rate constants and compartment fractions are reported. Suspended solids from irrigation runoff water collected from a field that had been sprayed with permethrin 1 d before were used in the experiments to compare desorption rates for field‐applied pyrethroids with those for laboratory‐spiked materials. Suspended solids were used in desorption experiments because suspended solids can be a key source of hydrophobic compounds in surface waters. The rapid desorption rate parameters of field‐applied permethrin were not statistically different from those of laboratory spiked permethrin, indicating that desorption of the spiked pyrethroids is comparable to desorption of the pyrethroids added and aged in the field. Sorbent characteristics had the greatest effect on desorption rate parameters; as organic carbon content of the solids increased, the rapid desorption fractions and rapid desorption rate constants both decreased. The desorption rate constant of the slow compartment for sediment containing permethrin aged for 28 d was significantly different compared to aging for 1 d and 7 d, whereas desorption in the rapid and slow compartments did not differ between these treatments. Environ. Toxicol. Chem. 2011; 30:1760–1766. © 2011 SETAC