Trace Estimation and Differentiation of Some Mustards Employing Gas-Liquid Chromatography

摘要

Gas-liquid chromatography, will specificity obtained from proper temperature and column parameters, was found to be applicable to the assessment of purity of mustards; coupled with an electron capture detector, it was found to provide the most sensitive and specific method yet developed for the quantitation of extremely low concentrations of the mustard agents. The minimum detectable quantity, using this instrumentation, was 5 ng for bis(2-chloroethyl)sulfide (H), bis(2-chloroethyl)ethylamine (HN1), bis(2-chloroethyl)methylamine (HN2), tris(2-chloroethyl)amine (HN3), bis(2-chloroethylthio)ethane (Q), and bis(2-chloroethylthioethyl)ether (T). The technique was found to be effective for both the estimation of extracts from water and the direct measurement of the vapor of these agents, as long as 5 ng or more of either the sulfur mustards, or the free base forms of the nitrogen mustards, were presented to the detector. The methods reported here should be applicable to the detection of the mustard agents in physiological media provided appropriate extractions are made prior to analysis. In theory, with the extraction and a twentyfold evaporative concentration step, the method will extend detection of 1 p.p.b. of the subject mustard agents. Based on replicate injections at the 50 ng level, the standard deviation for H is 2.2%, using the electron capture detector. (Author)