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Analysis of khat

المؤلف:  Sue Jickells , Adam Negrusz (Editors)

المصدر:  Clarkes Analytical Forensic Toxicology

الجزء والصفحة:  76

2026-09-20

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Analysis of khat

Approximately 5–6 g of plant material is cut into small pieces. Methanol (15–20 mL) is added and the mixture sonicated for 15 min. The green methanolic solution is filtered or decanted and condensed to near dryness. Approximately 20 mL of 0.2 M sulfuric acid is added and the solution acquires a reddish hue. A chloroform extract removes the neutral organic compounds. The aqueous layer (red layer) is basified with saturated sodium bicarbonate solution. Methylene chloride (20 mL) is added to extract the cathinone and cathine. A stream of air is used to reduce the volume to approximately 1 mL.

Colour test

 Cathinone gives no reaction with Marquis reagent, but does produce a slow-forming yellow–orange colour with Chen’s reagent.

Separation and/or identification

Both GC and HPLC methods are available for analysis.