Analysis of Powders Containing Illicit Drugs Using Magnetic Levitation
- Harvard Univ., Cambridge, MA (United States)
- Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Dulles, VA (United States). Special Testing and Research Laboratory
Magneto-Archimedes levitation (MagLev) enables the separation of powdered mixtures of illicit drugs (cocaine, methamphetamine, heroin, fentanyl, and its analogues), adulterants, and diluents based on density, and allows the presumptive identification of individual components. Small samples (mass <50 mg), with low concentrations of illicit drugs, present a particular challenge to analysis for forensic chemists. The MagLev device, a cuvette containing a solution of paramagnetic gadolinium(III) chelate in a non-polar solvent, placed between two like-poles-facing NdFeB magnets, allowed separation of seven relevant compounds simultaneously. In particular, initial separation with MagLev, followed by characterization by FTIR-ATR, enabled identification of fentanyl in a sample of fentanyl-laced heroin (1.3 wt % fentanyl, 2.6 wt % heroin, and 96.1 wt % lactose). MagLev allows identification of unknown powders in mixtures and enables confirmatory identification based on structure-specific techniques.
- Research Organization:
- West Virginia Univ., Morgantown, WV (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Office of Science (SC)
- Grant/Contract Number:
- FG02-01ER45862; ER45862
- OSTI ID:
- 1800028
- Alternate ID(s):
- OSTI ID: 1577192
- Journal Information:
- Angewandte Chemie (International Edition), Vol. 59, Issue 2; ISSN 1433-7851
- Publisher:
- WileyCopyright Statement
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Web of Science
Evolving Magnetically Levitated Plasma Proteins Detects Opioid Use Disorder as a Model Disease
|
journal | January 2020 |
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