Determination of trace icing Inhibitors (ether type) in free-floating fuels by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry

A gas chromatography/mass spectrometric assay method was developed for the simultaneous determination of ethylene glycol monomethyl ether (EGME) and diethylene glycol monomethyl ether (DEGME) in spilled aviation fuels. Ethylene glycol monobutyl ether (EGBE) and ethylene glycol monoethyl ether (EGEE) were used as internal standard and surrogate, respectively. The sample preparation consists of back-extraction with 7 mL of methylene chloride after extraction of 50 mL of fuel with 2 mL of water. The extract was concentrated to dryness and dissolved with 100L of methanol and analyzed by CC-MS (SIM). The peaks had good chromatographic properties by using semi-polar column and the extraction of these compounds from fuel also gave high recoveries of 75 and 85 % with small variations for EGME and DEGME, respectively. Method detection limits were 1.3 ng/mL for EGME and 1.0 ng/mL for DEGME in spilled fuel. The method may be useful for fuel-type differentiation between kerosene and JP-8, which may originate from the storage tank.