N-Nitroso-3-hydroxypyrrolidine in fried bacon and fried out fat

N-Nitroso-3-hydroxypyrrolidine was extracted from fried bacon and fried-out fat with water:methanol (3:2). After elimination of residual nitrite with ammonium sulfamate, the nitrosamine was removed from the water:methanol by continuous extraction with dichloromethane. Identification was accomplished by conversion of N-nitroso-3-hydroxypyrrolidine to the trimethylsilyl derivative followed by separation on a capillary column and characterization by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Quantification and recovery studies were conducted without derivatization. Concentrated dichloromethane extracts were analyzed using a gas chromatographic-thermal energy analyzer system. Recovery of N-nitroso-3-hydroxypyrrolidine from fried bacon and fried-out fat was 62 and 63%, respectively. Five commercial samples of fried bacon contained 0.4-3.9 ppb, while the fried-out fat contained 0.3-2.2 ppb N-nitroso-3-hydroxypyrrolidine.