Detection of illicit drugs on surfaces using direct analysis in real time (DART) time‐of‐flight mass spectrometry

Abstract

Methamphetamine (meth) from meth syntheses or habitual meth smoking deposited on household surfaces poses human health hazards. The U.S. State Departments of Health require decontamination of sites where meth was synthesized (meth labs) before they are sold. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) methods for meth analysis require wipe sampling, extraction, clean-up, solvent exchange, derivatization, and/or mass spectral analysis using selected ion monitoring. Rapid and inexpensive analyses could screen for drug-contamination within structures with greater spatial resolution, provide real-time analyses during decontamination, and provide thorough documentation of successful clean ups. Herein an autosampler/open-air ion source time-of-flight mass spectrometric technique is described that required only direct sampling using cotton-swab wipes. Each wipe sample collection required 2 min and data acquisition required only 13 s per sample. Optimum collision-induced dissociation voltages, desorption gas temperatures, and wipe sample solvents were determined for 11 drugs. Peaks were observed in analyte-ion traces for 0.025 µg/100 cm(2) of meth and seven other drugs. This level is half the detection limit of NIOSH methods and one-fourth of the lowest U.S. state decontamination limit for meth. Dynamic ranges of 100 in concentration were demonstrated for eight drugs, which is sufficient for a screening technique. The volatilities of 11 drugs deposited on glass were determined. The pick up of the drugs by solvent-soaked cotton-swab wipes from glass relative to acrylic latex paint was also compared.

Exposures associated with clandestine methamphetamine drug laboratories in Australia

“…A range of analytical methods have been used in the measurement of contamination (on surfaces and in different materials) associated with clandestine laboratories (157,(160)(161)(162)(163)(164)(165)(166).…”

Identification and quantification of synthetic cannabinoids in “spice-like” herbal mixtures: update of the German situation for the spring of 2015

“…The usefulness of this technique in forensic analysis of illegal drugs [like cocaine, tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), opioids, psilocin, etc.] was demonstrated before [28], and DART-MS is now a well established direct technique to screen complex biological matrices for synthetic cannabinoids, enabling a rapid and sensitive analysis overview without the need for sample extraction [29]. However, under these conditions, DART-MS is a preliminary qualitative screening method and cannot provide accurate quantitation data, because the illicit drugs are usually distributed very inhomogeneously in the herbal products [30].…”

Easily fabricated ion source for characterizing mixtures of organic compounds by direct analysis in real time mass spectrometry

“…45,48 DART analysis has been applied successfully in the majority of applications where other ambient mass spectrometry methods have been utilized. 11,21,47,49 The selection of DESI or DART as the ionization source for a particular analytical application requires consideration of the target analyte's solubility in potential DESI spray solvents, and vapor pressure as well as potential reactivity in known DART ionization mechanisms. Prior work has shown that DART analysis can be readily applied to applications with highly complex sample compositions.…”