Mass Spectrometry of 3-Pyridylcarbinol ('picolinyl')
Esters of Fatty Acids
My favourite type of derivative for identification of fatty acids by GC-MS is the 3‑pyridylcarbinol ester, at least in mass spectrometry terms, although some would argue in favour of DMOX derivatives. Personal opinions aside, it is always advisable to prepare more than one type of derivative for analysis with novel samples. The relatively high molecular weight of 3-pyridylcarbinol esters means that higher column temperatures are required than with other derivatives, but many of the modern polar stationary phases are sufficiently stable thermally to cope. In addition to analysis by GC, they can be separated by reversed-phase HPLC under appropriate conditions as described here... Please note that the term 'picolinyl' ester is inaccurate and is best avoided as explained in our introductory page. These web pages are updated whenever new information and mass spectra become available.
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We have ~520 mass spectra of 3-pyridylcarbinol esters of different fatty acids available for examination here that were collected from our research efforts over more than 30 years, but without interpretation. ![]() |
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Recommended Book: Christie, W.W. and Han, X. Lipid Analysis - Isolation, Separation, Identification and Lipidomic Analysis (4th edition), 446 pages (Oily Press, Woodhead Publishing and now Elsevier) (2010) - at Science Direct.
© Author: William W. Christie | ![]() |
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Updated: November 15th, 2023 | Contact/credits/disclaimer |