NCJ Number
212914
Journal
Journal of Forensic Sciences Volume: 51 Issue: 1 Dated: January 2006 Pages: 39-44
Date Published
January 2006
Length
6 pages
Annotation
Since illicitly produced heroin is usually cut with carbohydrates to increase bulk, this paper reports on the effectiveness of using a capillary electrophoresis (CE) method for the qualitative analysis of the carbohydrates of interest (dextrose, lactose, sucrose, inositol, and mannitol).
Abstract
Although excellent separation was obtained for these five carbohydrates, the mannitol and inositol peak heights significantly decreased during multiple injections. Replacing the glass vials recommended by the manufacturer with plastic vials for the run buffer (Agilent Basic Anion Buffer) resulted in reproducible separations for the carbohydrates. For the CE method, a 64 cm (55.5 cm to detector window) by 50 mm capillary was used with the Agilent Basic Anion Buffer modified to pH 12.1. This separation was performed at 25 degrees centigrade with a voltage of 20kV and indirect detection with 2.6-pyridinedicarboxylic acid as the visualization reagent. This methodology is also applicable for the screening of inorganic and organic anions using indirect detection and acidic adulterants using direct detection. For a run time of 13 minutes, the relative standard deviation (n=6) of the methodology was better than 0.35 percent for migration times and less than 2.6 percent for corrected peak areas. 5 figures, 2 tables, and 18 references