Determination of Sudan I and a newly synthesized Sudan III positional isomer in the color additive D&C Red No. 17 using high-performance liquid chromatography.

Specifications in the Code of Federal Regulations for the color additive D&C Red No. 17 (Colour Index 26100) limit the levels of two subsidiary colors, 1-(phenylazo)-2-naphthol (Sudan I) and 1-[[2-(phenylazo)phenyl]azo]-2-naphthalenol (Sudan III o-isomer), to 3% and 2%, respectively. The present work reports the development of a high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method for the quantitative determination of these subsidiary colors. Since Sudan III o-isomer needed to be synthesized for use as a reference material, a two-step procedure was devised: (i) preparative-scale synthesis of the intermediate 2-aminoazobenzene (2AAB) and its purification by counter-current chromatography and (ii) diazotization of 2AAB and coupling with 2-naphthol. Characterization of the newly synthesized Sudan III o-isomer is also reported. Sudan I and Sudan III o-isomer were quantified by using five-point calibration curves with data points ranging from 0.108 to 3.240% and 0.077 to 2.227% by weight, respectively. The HPLC method is rapid (14 min for the total analysis cycle) and simple to implement. It was applied to the analysis of test portions from 25 batches of D&C Red No. 17 submitted to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) for certification, and it has recently been implemented by USFDA for routine batch certification of that color additive.