Oil fingerprinting analysis using gas chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight (GC–QTOF)

The fingerprinting of oil spills can be a challenge to analytical chemists due to the complex nature of crude oils and the low concentrations of many constituents of interest. Oils spilled into the environment are immediately subject to various natural weathering processes, subsequently altering the chemical fingerprints and composition of spilled oils. In addition, background materials could severely interfere with the accurate determination of petroleum compounds when applying currently established analytical techniques, for example, single quadrupole GC–MS. Gas chromatography coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometer (GC–QTOF) greatly enhances the resolution of individual series of compounds and, owing to GC–QTOF’s accurate mass measurements, subsequently reduces interferences from the sample matrix and thereby provides more accurate identification and quantitation of targeted spilled oil components. This chapter provides an introduction and overview of the application of GC–QTOF in the chemical fingerprinting analysis of petroleum oils and petroleum-contaminated environmental samples.