Analysis of Psychoactive Phenothiazine Drugs by Gas Chromatography

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Abstract
Data is presented showing that some psychoactive phenothiazine drugs can be more satisfactorily detected with the electron affinity detector than the flame at concentrations of 0.05 to 1.50 mrcrograms per one microliter injection; the ability of the drug to capture electrons being dependent upon the type of atomic or group substituent in the 2-position of the phenothiazine ring. Furthermore, for all practical purposes, the lower limits of detection are not limited by the detector's sensitivity or geometry, but rather due to the adsorptivity of the column solid substrate. Using both detectors with identical chromatographic operating conditions, a comparison of sensitivities of these compounds was made. At a column temperature of 237°C, a 10-component mixture is easily eluted in less than 10 minutes; the last component, thioridazine, with a molecular weight of 370 and a boiling point in excess of 500°C.