Regis Silyation Reagents

Silylation is the most widely used derivatization procedure for sample analysis by GC. Silylation reagents are popular because they are easy to use and readily form derivatives. In silylation, an active hydrogen is replaced by an alkylsilyl group, such as trimethylsilyl (TMS) or t-butyldimethylsilyl (t-BDMS). Compared to their parent compounds, silyl derivatives are more volatile, less polar, and more thermally stable.

As a result, GC separation is improved and detection is enhanced. Silylation reagents are generally moisture sensitive, requiring them to be sealed under nitrogen to prevent deactivation. The derivatives of TMS reagents are also moisture sensitive. In response to this difficulty, t-BDMS reagents were introduced, which enabled the formation of derivatives 10,000 times more stable to hydrolysis than the TMS ethers.

Both TMS and t-BDMS reagents are suitable for a wide variety of compounds, offer excellent thermal stability and can be used in a variety of GC conditions and applications. Analysis by the popular combination of gas chromatography and mass spectrometry (GS/MS) often requires special sample derivatization. Particularly effective in these applications is MtBSTFA.

Regis GC Derivatization Reagents