Abstract
The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of ultra-fast UV laser pulses on the photostability of alpha-tocopheryl acetate (vitamin e acetate) in hexane. UV-Vis absorption and fluorescence spectra of vitamin e acetate and vitamin e in three types of solvents, namely methanol, acetonitrile and hexane, are presented. UV-Vis spectrophotometry was used to follow the photodegradation kinetics of the molecule in hexane. The photodegradation was found to follow first order kinetics. Degradation photoproducts were separated by TLC and identified by mass spectroscopy.