Analysis of oil resins using electrospray ionization mass spectrometry

Each year there are accidents involving oil tankers, pipelines, and storage facilities resulting in the release of large quantities of oil into the environment. As a result, oils are usually characterized for identification purposes. Nitrogen-containing aromatic compounds (NCACs) such as substituted pyridines, indoles, quinolines and carbazoles are known to occur in the low to high molecular weight fractions of crude oil. Use of the popular SARA fractionation procedure allows oils to be separated into fractions containing Saturates, Aromatics, Resins, and Asphaltenes. This allows for the individual and chemical class identification of many of the constituents present in oils worldwide. The objective of this research was to use Electrospray Ionization Tandem Mass Spectrometry (ESI-MS/MS) to study a variety of NCACs for use in the analysis of the Resins fraction of several crude oils. In addition, the affect of weathering on these oil resins was studied using a technique employing Electrospray Ionization Mass Spectrometry (ESI-MS).