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. 2017 Jul 24;4(2):179-187.
doi: 10.1080/20961790.2017.1349600. eCollection 2019.

Rapid and simple analysis of amphetamine-type illegal drugs using excitation-emission matrix fluorescence coupled with parallel factor analysis

Buyi Xu  1   2 , Yi Ye  2 , Linchuan Liao  2
Affiliations

Rapid and simple analysis of amphetamine-type illegal drugs using excitation-emission matrix fluorescence coupled with parallel factor analysis

Buyi Xu et al. Forensic Sci Res. .

Abstract

Nowadays, the abuse of illegal drugs has been an increasingly grim problem in the world. Excitation-emission matrix fluorescence combined with parallel factor analysis was used to make a quantitative analysis of the simulated amphetamine-type illegal drugs. Satisfactory results were achieved for simultaneous determination of methamphetamine (MAM) and 3, 4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) in the presence of adulterants. The average recoveries were (99.8 ± 0.6)% and (101.6 ± 5.7)% for MAM and MDMA, respectively. Figures of merit including root-mean-square error of calibration and prediction, sensitivity and selectivity were investigated to evaluate the performance of the proposed method. The limits of detection were 0.054 and 0.002 1 μg/mL for MAM and MDMA, respectively.

Keywords: Forensic science; PARAFAC; excitation–emission matrix fluorescence; illegal drugs.

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Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
The structures of methamphetamine (MAM), 3, 4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) and their adulterants.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Excitation–emission matrix fluorescence spectrum of six ATS before (A1–F1) and after (A2–F2) handling the scattering signal. (A1, A2) MAM, (B1, B2) MDMA, (C1, C2) COC, (D1, D2) AM, (E1, E2) PSE and (F1, F2) CAF.
Figure 3.
Figure 3.
Loadings resolved from PARAFAC (solid line) and the actual spectra obtained from the individual compounds (dotted line). (A1–A4) excitation spectra and (B1–B4) emission spectra.
Figure 4.
Figure 4.
Emission spectra (A) and concentration loadings (B) of MAM in the presence of CAF.
Figure 5.
Figure 5.
Actual and resolved profiles by PARAFAC Model 5. (A) Excitation profiles, (B) emission profiles and (C) concentration scores.
Figure 6.
Figure 6.
Predicted concentrations decomposed by PARAFAC Model 5 and actual concentrations for MAM, MDMA and COC.
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