Further spectral and chromatographic studies of ambergris

Jetsam ambergris, found washed ashore on beaches, is an environmentally
modified form of a natural product of Sperm whales which sometimes
develops a pleasant odour. Odorous samples have proved valuable in
perfumery. Identification of jetsam ambergris by analysis of organicsoluble
extracts by Fourier transform infra-red spectroscopy (FTIR) and of
derivatised samples by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS)
has already been shown. Here, we describe a different method, in which
characteristic alkenic protons and carbon atoms of the major constituent
ambrein, were identified in whole extracts using nuclear magnetic
resonance spectroscopy (NMR). The advantages of employing NMR
spectroscopy included rapidity, reduced losses of volatiles compared
to GC-MS and detection of non-GC amenable constituents. However,
the identities and quantities of co-occurring individual components
(e.g. steroids) could not easily be assigned in the unfractionated extracts
by NMR spectroscopy, whereas they were by GC-MS, so an approach
combining FTIR, GC-MS and NMR spectroscopic methods is advocated.