Chemical attribution of the home-made explosive ETN – Part I: Liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis of partially nitrated erythritol impurities

Characterization of the Hexanitrate Esters of Sugar Alcohols

“…This method was used by our lab to prepare SHN, but the recovered product SHN often melted between 44–55 °C, rather than the expected 55 °C. Initially, this was thought to be the result of impurities in the product such as the penta‐ or lower nitrated species, which has been reported with other nitrate esters [11]. Varying synthesis conditions to include different nitration times (4 to 18 hours), reaction temperatures, and recrystallization procedures did not improve the melting point.…”

“…PETN has two known polymorphs that depend on the crystallization technique [28]. Researchers have examined the crystallization of ETN, but to date, no other phases have been observed [9, 11].…”

“…The discovery of nitrate esters shown in Figure 1 dates to the mid‐ to late‐1800’s. Recently erythritol tetranitrate (ETN) has received considerable attention [3–11]. ETN has a similar explosive performance to PETN; albeit at the cost of increased sensitivity [12].…”

Investigation of the Impurities in Erythritol Tetranitrate (ETN) Using UHPLC‐QTOF

“…Similar work was performed by Bezemer et al . using HPLC‐MS to investigate the relationship of partially nitrated erythritol impurities to precursors used in the synthesis of ETN [14]. An outcome of our work and Bezemer et al .…”

1,3,5‐Trichloro‐2,4,6‐Trinitrobenzene: The Elusive Impurity Standard

“…High‐pressure liquid chromatography mass spectrometry (HPLC‐MS) is an analytical technique commonly employed for untargeted identification of impurities (i. e. any compounds not specifically screened for) and targeted quantification of impurities (i. e. compounds with known identities that are specifically screened for, often with standards) within substances of interest [3–5]. HPLC‐MS analyses involve the injection of a liquid solution into a separation column.…”