Rapid and simple method for direct determination of several amphetamines in seized tablets by GC–FID

Abstract

A simple and rapid method for direct simultaneous determination of amphetamine, methamphetamine, 3,4-methylenedioxyamphetamine (MDA), 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA), 3,4-methylenedioxy- N-ethylamphetamine (MDEA) and N-methyl-1-(3,4-methylenedioxyphenyl)-2-butanamine (MBDB) in seized tablets was developed using gas chromatography with flame ionization detection. Separation of all six underivatized amphetamines, including diphenylamine as internal standard, was performed in about 6 min, using SPB-50 capillary column. Amphetamine and methamphetamine eluted with negligible tailing while the other amphetamines had highly symmetrical peaks. Sensitivity per component on-column was in the nanogram range, and reproducibility from 2.6 to 6.6% at low concentration (2.4 μg/mL) and from 1.2 to 2.6% at high (70 μg/mL) concentration. The method has a wide linear range, from Limit of detection (LOD) to almost 200 μg/mL, thus allowing analysis of different samples across a wide range of possible concentrations of amphetamines. This simple, fast and precise method using gas chromatography–flame ionization detector (GC–FID), in conjunction with other methods (TLC, IR, HPLC), can be used for identification of amphetamines and direct determination in seized tablets, especially in laboratories with heavy workload.