ABSTRACT
One of the methods used for identification of the structures of new psychoactive substances is liquid chromatography coupled to quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (LC-QTOFMS). The ability to determine the mass of a compound is very useful in the identification of new psychoactive substances. A QTOFMS is a hybrid of a quadrupole mass filter and a time-of-flight analyzer. Studies of cathinone derivatives were also carried out by LC-QTOFMS. In forensic laboratories, gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry with electron impact ionization is routinely applied to the identification of drugs. The high analytical speed of the direct analysis in real-time mass spectrometry method allowed quick screening of the confiscated samples that contained novel substances in high concentration. While originally targeted at the analysis of peptides and other large biological polymers, the device is applied to environmental and food samples and analysis of pharmaceutical products and psychoactive substances in seized samples and biological material.
