Glyphosate is a systemic, post-emergent, non-selective herbicide widely used in agriculture. The objective of this study was to develop a method for sample preparation, to partially purified natural water samples contaminated with residues of glyphosate, and to quantify them by derivation and spectroscopically. To assess the accuracy of the method, samples of water from an artesian well and from a stream were fortified with known amounts of glyphosate. The concentration of glyphosate was determined using a standard curve concentration range from 4 to 14 mg L-1. From the concentration of glyphosate recovered, in both samples of fortified water it was found that DOWEX MWA-1 resin and NaCl 0.100 mol L-1 eluent were effective in the purification of the samples. It was found that the method is reproducible because the results are within the range acceptable for the analysis of residues of pesticides, with a percentage coefficient of variation below the allowed limit. It was found that in the water samples with suspected contamination, the concentration of glyphosate was greater than that permitted by the Ministry of Health.
Residues; spectroscopic studies; systemic herbicide
