A Simple Approach to Gas Chromatographic Microanalysis of Alcohols in Blood and Urine by a Direct-Injection Technique1

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Abstract
An ultra-micro method utilizing direct sample injection is described for the simultaneous identification and quantification of ethanol, methanol, isopropanol, and acetone in blood and urine by gas chromatography. Allquots of whole blood, serum, plasma, or urine and an internal standard, 1-propanol, are mixed together in equal parts. One microliter of the mixture is then injected into a Shimadzu GC-4BM gas chromatograph equipped with a flame ionization detector. The glass column, 3-mm l.d. × 2-m long, is packed with 0.2% Carbowax 1500 on 80/100 Carbopak C (Supalco, Inc., Bellefonte, PA #SP-1827). The column is fitted with a precolumn glass insert filled with a loosely packed silanized glass wool plug that acts as a trap for the nonvolatile protein material of the blood and urine specimens. The optimal operating conditions for the gas chromatograph are: column temperature 120°C; injector temperature 100°C; carrier gas flow 20 mi/min; hydrogen and air pressure set at optimal conditions for a hydrogen flame. The relative retention times of the eluted compounds to the internal standard, 1-propanol, are: ethanol 0.51; methanol 0.37; acetone 0.65; and isopropanol 0.78. A simple micro method is also described for the collection and storage of blood for alcohol determination. The techniques provide a rapid, reproducible procedure for the individual or simultaneous ultra-micro analysis of alcohols commonly encountered in clinical or forensic toxicology.

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