The mass spectra of permethylated oligosaccharides.

The electron impact mass spectra of permethyl ethers of twenty-five highly purified oligosaccharides, containing first, aldohexose units only and second, at least one fructose unite, have been determined. It is concluded that spectra of these derivatives can yield considerable structural information, especially in relation to the detection of fructose units, the pyranose/furanose ratio and the position of the glycosidic linkage, and are to be preferred from this point of view to the mass spectra of trimethylsilyl ethers.