Latest Developments in Comprehensive Gas Chromatography and Mass Spectrometry

Gas Chromatography 

There has been some growth in the field of comprehensive gas chromatography, starting from developments in hardware and software, which is enabling the petrochemistry community to achieve reproducible and quantitative evaluation of complex samples. As it stands, industry is catching on, but a great many benefits of these developments have yet to be explored. For example, leading-edge separation technologies and advanced solutions for detailed chemical analysis, whether it be multidimensional process analysers, supercritical fluid separations, or high-resolution capillary GC-MS. Such advancements are usefully applied to crude oil samples, but the complexity of down-stream products means they remain opaque for the moment. Clearly, this is fertile ground for the development of innovative and powerful separation solutions.  

Some researchers have explored how the combination of vacuum ultraviolet spectroscopy with comprehensive gas chromatography may improve the quantitative analysis of gas oils – an essential procedure for assessing performance in relation to standards. Usually, in order to quantify for families which co-elute in comprehensive gas chromatography, analysts fractionate gas oil prior to analysis, but adding VUV spectroscopy to the process enables users to distinguish between most hydrocarbon families, rendering pre-fractionation unnecessary.   

Mass Spectrometry 

Recently, new perspectives have emerged regarding the hyphenation of thermal analysis to different mass spectrometric approaches for the analysis of mixed plastic waste. These methods are some of the most promising approaches for the recycling of plastics, as pyrolysis produces solid residue in addition to liquid and gaseous products.  

Another interesting development in mass spectrometry uses different ion sources in conjunction with fourier-transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry in the analysis of different plastic pyrolysis oils. These oils, which are produced from plastic waste materials, are sources of monomers, fuels and chemicals, thereby circumventing the problems of fossil resources and alleviating waste-disposal concerns. In order to improve essential conversion and valorisation processes, the advanced molecular description provided by this combination is essential. Further, switching up ionization sources ensures an extensive molecular description and enables users to accurately assess the efficiency of different catalytic chemical treatments.