MTBSTFA (systematic name N-(tert-butyldimethylsilyl)-N-methyltrifluoroacetamide) is a reagent used for derivatizing compounds to make them easier to analyze by gas chromatography. It is one of several reagents used to covalently link alkylsilyl groups to certain functional groups of the compound to be analyzed. The resulting analytes are less polar and are less susceptible to hydrogen bonding. MTBSTFA adds t-butyldimethylsilyl to convert, for example, alcohols to tert-butyldimethylsilyl ethers. MTBSTFA, and the structurally related BSTFA that adds trimethylsilyl groups, are the two most commonly used silyl derivatizing agents. MTBSTFA is being used on the Curiosity Mars rover as part of experiments analyzing the composition of rock samples to search for organic molecules.
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