Chromatographic Separation of Ephedrine, Pseudoephedrine and Phenyl Propanolamine on Silica Gel –G Layers Using Different Solvent Systems

Ephedrine, Pseudoephedrine and Phenylpropanolamine are available in combination with antihistamines, Guaifenesin, Dextromethorphan and paracetamol. These drugs have been widely used for illicit purpose and sometimes multiple doses of these drugs are taken by athletes for quick relief as therapeutic medicine that crosses the maximum recommended dose and gives positive test results in dope test analysis. Clandestine laboratories use these medicines as a precursor to manufacture numerous illicit drugs. Such cases pose a challenge to forensic scientists due to their quick elimination from human body, lack of suitable detection protocol, complicated and similar chemical structures. The present paper presents Chromatographic separation of Ephedrine, Pseudoephedrine and Phenylpropanolamine using 27 solvent systems. The drugs were best separated and detected in n-butyl acetate: Acetone: 1- Butanol: 5 M Ammonia: Methanol (hRf 80, 91, 54) and Ethyl Acetate: Butanone: Formic Acid: Water (hRf 37, 30, 45)