Positional isomer differentiation of monoalkylated naphthalenes using principal components analysis and mass spectrometry

Tandem mass spectrometry has been used to differentiate positional isomers of some monoalkylated naphthalenes. The basis of the distinction is the cluster of peaks from m/z 150 to 155. Principal components analysis can extract isomer-specific information that is not obvious from simple visual inspection of the spectra. The analysis led to the observation of similar trends in single-stage electron impact mass spectra.