The distribution, and use of cannabis have become popular topics within recent years. Due to increased recognition of its medical applications, the cannabis industry has brought to the forefront a wide variety of analytical efforts. In addition, regulations have been developed by the states concerning the health and safety of cannabis products. This includes the use of pesticides during plant growth. Pesticides are designed to eradicate any weeds, insects or fungus that poses a threat to the plant. Although Cannabis is illegal in the eyes of the federal government, certain states that have legalized Cannabis are monitoring which pesticides are safe to use. To date, only a few hundred pesticides have been deemed safe to use on Cannabis material.<br/>One integral part of the aforementioned analytical efforts is the identification in cannabis products of pesticides used on cannabis plants during the period of plant growth. Developing an analytical method to identify these pesticides in cannabis materials is essential for the protection of consumers and compliance with state regulations. The goal of our current research is to develop a standardized method for the identification of these various regulated pesticides. This method includes an optimized extraction procedure to isolate the pesticides from the matrix of the cannabis product and an optimized gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) method to separate and identify the individual pesticides. Our identification of the pesticides is enhanced by the use of NIST’s Automated Mass Spectral Deconvolution and Identification System (AMDIS). AMDIS is a set of procedures that extract pure component spectra from complex chromatograms to determine whether or not the component can be identified as one the compounds in a target reference library. In our research, our reference library consists of pesticides that may appear in cannabis products and that are regulated by the states. The use of our AMDIS method allows for standardized detection and identification of pesticides in complex cannabis products.

An optimized method for the identification of pesticides in cannabis products using GC/MS with AMDIS

255th National Meeting (2018)

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