Acylation, a replacement to silylation, allows the conversion of compounds that consist of active hydrogens (-OH, -SH and -NH) into esters, thioesters, and amides via the action of a carboxylic acid or derivative. The carbonyl group adjacent to the halogenated carbons is known to improve the electron capture detector (ECD) response. Acylation has several advantages:
- It enhances the stability of compounds by protecting unstable groups.
- It may confer volatility on substances like carbohydrates or amino acids, that have several polar groups that they are non-volatile and usually decompose on heating.
- It facilitates the separations not possible with underivatized compounds.
- Compounds are detectable at very low levels with an ECD.
2,2,6,6-Tetramethyl-3,5-heptanedione is a reagent used to form fragmentation-directing derivatives for GC/MS analysis.