Page 433 - Multidimensional Chromatography

Forensic and Toxicological Applications 425

Figure 15.12 GC–GC chromatogram of a natural cis-3-hexen-1-ol fraction. Peak identifica-
tion is as follows: 1, ethyl-2-methylbutyrate; 2, trans-2-hexenal; 3, 1-hexanol; 4, cis-3-hexen-1-
ol; 5, trans-2-hexen-1-ol. Adapted from Journal of High Resolution Chromatography, 15,
S. Nitz et al., Multidimensional gas chromatography–isotope ratio mass spectrometry,
(MDGC–IRMS). Part A: system description and technical requirements’, pp. 387–391, 1992,
with permission from Wiley-VCH.

Comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography, originally proposed by
Schomburg (31) and developed by Phillips and co-workers (32–35), in which the
effluent from a traditional analytical column is sampled into a short, narrow-bore,
thin-film second column, also shows promise in the analysis of the complex mixtures
commonly found in forensic analysis. This technique offers a very rapidly obtained
second dimension and high peak capacity which is necessary for complex mixtures,
with thousands of peaks being possible in a single chromatogram. The method has
been applied mostly in the petroleum and the environmental industries. Several
authors have recently reported the use of comprehensive two dimensional gas chro-
matography on petroleum related samples (36–38).
Although comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography has not been
applied to any great extent in forensic analysis, the technique shows great promise
when samples or sample matrices are complex. For example, when oil is spilled into
waterways, assigning responsibility for the economic and environmental damage is
often difficult. Gaines et al. employed comprehensive two-dimensional GC in the
forensic analysis of samples collected at oil-spill sites and were able to obtain results
which were comparable to those obtained by classical methods (39). This article also