FIBEROPTIC REMOTE SENSOR FOR INSITU FLUOROMETRIC QUANTIFICATION IN THIN-LAYER CHROMATOGRAPHY

The analytical use of a fibre-optic-based fluorescence instrument for in situ scanning in thin-layer chromatography is described. The system was used for quantitative measurements. Phenothiazines with similar spectra were separated by high-performance thin-layer chromatography. Chloroform-methanol (9 + 1) was used as a solvent and silica gel as adsorbent. The fluorescence signal was enhanced by dipping the plates in a mixture of Triton X-100 and chloroform (1 + 4). The R(F) values for acepromazine, promethazine, propiomazine, thioridazine and trimeprazine were calculated. Acepromazine and propiomazine were determined over the ranges 8.6-300 and 8-240-mu-M, respectively, with relative standard deviations between 1.3 and 4.4%. The detection limits were 5.3-mu-M for acepromazine and 6.4-mu-M for propiomazine.