**Figure 15.**

*Isolated Botryococcus braunii (a, b) and solid bitumen (c, d) particles after LaMPy analysis showing lasergenerated craters and oil droplets produced (TWL: A, c and FM: b, d).*

#### *Using LmPy-GC/MSMS to Molecular Characterization of Organic Components… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.114360*

The level of temperature is critical to any pyrolysis analysis. The temperatures must be high enough to break molecular bonds without destroying the material. Hence, caution needs to be taken when pyrolysis temperature is selected. Overly high temperatures result in molecular degradation, which generates non-specific products while low temperatures are not analytically useful due to their low degradation potential. In this way, to obtain successful analytical pyrolysis one must select a temperature that allows the controlled degradation of macromolecules, producing a wide variety of products, quickly enough to be compatible with GC [26]. However, the control temperature in the LmPy system is not possible. On the other hand, the laser beam also provides a thermal flux (1000°C/s) enough to allow heating of polymeric materials in less than 2 seconds. This extremely fast laser incidence is a unique feature of micropyrolysis and has the fundamental purpose of reducing or annulling secondary reactions, allowing the production of original substances [15, 17].

Another characteristic of LmPy is the temperature applied. This temperature corresponds to the required energy to break covalent bonds, which can modify the molecular stereochemical features during the pyrolysis analysis. Consequently, the highly energetic, collimated, and coherent laser radiation is able to supply significant amounts of thermal energy in tiny and specific areas. These properties of directional coherent and monochromatic high-powered laser irradiation allow its use to thoroughly investigate non-volatile and thermally labile materials on a microscopic scale [3].

The use of the technique still has major hurdles to overcome, especially the high costs involved. Other difficulties are that the laser-material interactions are not fully understood, and not all samples couple efficiently to the laser to produce thermal degradation products. However, LmPy and other related methods have shown success in characterizing several organic components, significantly improving the possibility of studying the chemical composition of heterogeneous and small-sized materials, as well as identifying specific biomarkers in isolated OWM.

The destination of waste produced at the end of the consumption chain for industrialized products has attracted greater attention from various sectors of the economy, the scientific community, and public authorities. This concern with the reuse of raw materials is aimed at generating less environmental impact and making the consumption of products more sustainable [27].

In the field of pyrolysis, there are various initiatives to incorporate certain products into the circular economy. A good example is plastic, the mass production of which causes a number of environmental problems, and its final disposal is inefficient. Chemical recycling, a thermal process for breaking polymer bonds, has therefore been gaining ground in studies to increase the useful life of plastics [28]. One application widely used by researchers is pyrolysis as a technique for converting plastic waste into economically noble materials such as oils, gases, and ashes [29]. These measures do not close the loop, but they ensure more sustainable use of fossil energy to produce this waste and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

LmPy-GC/MSMS is an experimental technique that can contribute to the development of circular models by enabling detailed analysis of individual elements in complex mixtures. It was initially developed to meet the specific demands of the oil exploration industry. However, its methodological proposal can be used in various economic or scientific segments with the aim of identifying substances and understanding the molecular structures of pyrolyzed products, offering alternatives for improving recycling processes, creating materials with greater added value, and eliminating undesirable waste. One of the advantages of LmPy-GC/MSMS is the low amount of sample required to pyrolyze these components in the order of micrograms.
