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Updated: Jun 26, 2026

Free Radicals in Chemical Biology: from Chemical Behavior to Biomarker Development
Published on: April 15, 2013
Fragmentation pathways of some benzothiophene radical cations formed by atmospheric pressure chemical ionisation
Lisandra Cubero Herrera1, Louis Ramaley, J Stuart Grossert
1Department of Chemistry, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada B3H 4J3.
Abstract:
Polycyclic aromatic sulfur-containing compounds (PASHs) are commonly found in fossil fuels and are of considerable importance in environmental studies. This work presents detailed studies on the fragmentation patterns of radical cations formed from four representative PASHs, benzo[b]thiophene, dibenzothiophene, 4-methyldibenzothiophene and 4,6-dimethyldibenzothiophene, using tandem atmospheric pressure chemical ionization mass spectrometry (APCI-MS/MS). Understanding these fragmentation patterns can be a useful aid in the analysis of PASHs employing APCI or electron ionization (EI-MS/MS), either alone or in conjunction with liquid or gas chromatography.
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