Nitrogen Compound Characterization in Fuels by Multidimensional Gas Chromatography.

Certain nitrogen-containing compounds can contribute to fuel instability during storage. Hence, detection and characterization of these compounds is crucial. There are significant challenges to overcome when measuring trace compounds in a complex matrix such as fuels. Background interferences and matrix effects can create limitations to routine analytical instrumentation, such as GC-MS. In order to facilitate specific and quantitative measurements of trace nitrogen compounds in fuels, a nitrogen-specific detector is ideal. In this method, a nitrogen chemiluminescence detector (NCD) is used to detect nitrogen compounds in fuels. NCD utilizes a nitrogen-specific reaction that does not involve the hydrocarbon background. Two-dimensional (GCxGC) gas chromatography is a powerful characterization technique as it provides superior separation capabilities to one-dimensional gas chromatography methods. When GCxGC is paired with a NCD, the problematic nitrogen compounds found in fuels can be extensively characterized without background interference. The method presented in this manuscript details the process for measuring different nitrogen-containing compound classes in fuels with little sample preparation. Overall, this GCxGC-NCD method has been shown to be a valuable tool to enhance the understanding of the chemical composition of nitrogen-containing compounds in fuels and their impact on fuel stability. The % RSD for this method is <5% for intraday and <10% for interday analyses; the LOD is 1.7 ppm and the LOQ is 5.5 ppm.