Development and validation of a new RP-HPLC method for organic explosive compounds

Area of Science:

• Analytical Chemistry
• Forensic Science
• Chromatography

Background:

• Organic explosives pose significant security risks.
• Accurate detection and quantification of explosives are crucial for forensic investigations.
• Existing analytical methods may lack the required sensitivity or specificity for complex mixtures.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a novel RP-HPLC method for separating and quantifying common organic explosive compounds.
• To optimize chromatographic conditions for enhanced resolution and sensitivity.
• To apply the validated method for analyzing seized explosive materials.

Main Methods:

• Development and validation of a reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC) method.
• Optimization of mobile phase composition (IPA percentage in water) and flow rate.
• Utilized theoretical plate number (N), capacity factor (k'), and resolution (Rs) for condition optimization.
• Analysis of explosives including PETN, TNT, HMX, RDX, Tetryl, DNT, EGDN, and TNG.

Main Results:

• Optimal separation achieved with 22% IPA in water at a flow rate of 1.7 mL/min.
• Complete separation of explosives within 18 minutes.
• Excellent linearity (R² = 0.998-0.999) and high mean recoveries (95.3%-103.3%).
• Low limits of detection (LOD: 0.09-1.32 mg/L) and quantification (LOQ: 0.31-4.42 mg/L).
• Successful application to quantify TNT (372.99 mg/L) and RDX (79.55 mg/L) in seized samples.

Conclusions:

• The developed RP-HPLC method is highly suitable for the accurate separation and quantification of organic explosives using C18 columns.
• The method demonstrates excellent performance characteristics, making it valuable for forensic applications.
• This technique can aid in the identification and quantification of explosives in real-world samples, contributing to security efforts.