Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 25, 2026
High-throughput and Comprehensive Drug Surveillance Using Multisegment Injection-Capillary Electrophoresis-Mass Spectrometry
Published on: April 23, 2019
[Determination of the synthetic route based on impurity profiling of methamphetamine]
Jianxin Zhang1, Daming Zhang, Xuguang Han
1Forensic Medical examination Center of Beijing Public Security Bureau, Beijing 100085, China. zhangjianxin7292000@yahoo.com.cn
Objective:
Impurity profiling of seized methamphetamine may play an important role in the determination of the synthetic method employed and the criminal investigations of drug traffic routes.
Methods:
A sample of methamphetamine was dissolved in buffer solution. Impurities were extracted with ethyl acetate containing four internal standards (n-decane, n-pentadecane, n-eicosane and n-octacosane) and analyzed by GC-MS.
Results:
These data are suggestive of ephedrine/pseudoephedrine as the main precursor of the methamphetamine samples seized during 2006-2007. Six samples of selected eight samples were synthesized via the more specific ephedrine/hydriodic acid/red phosphorus method.
Conclusion:
Ephedrine/pseudoephedrine is common material used to synthesize methamphetamine.
