Gas Chromatography–Mass Spectrometric Determination of Traces of Ether-Type Icing Inhibitors in Free-Floating Fuels

摘要

A gas chromatographic–mass spectrometric (GC–MS) assay method has been developed for simultaneous determination of ethylene glycol monomethyl ether (EGME) and diethylene glycol monomethyl ether (DEGME) in spilled aviation fuels. Ethylene glycol monobutyl ether (EGBE) and ethylene glycol monoethyl ether (EGEE) were used as internal standard and surrogate, respectively. Sample preparation consisted of back-extraction with 7 mL dichloromethane after extraction of 50 mL of fuel with 2 mL of water. The extract was concentrated to dryness, dissolved in 100 μL methanol, and analyzed by GC–MS with selected-ion monitoring (SIM). The peaks had good chromatographic properties on a semi-polar column. EGME and DEGME were extracted from fuel with high recovery of 75 and 85%, with small variations, respectively. Method detection limits were 1.3 and 1.0 ng mL−1 for EGME and DEGME, respectively, in spilled fuel. DEGME was detected at concentrations of 22.6 and 19.7 ng mL−1 in two samples from among five free-floating samples collected in a tunnel of a subway station located in the vicinity of an army base in Korea. The method might be useful for differentiation between the fuel-types kerosene and JP-8, which might originate from a storage tank.