AbstractThe field desorption mass spectra of ten medicinal carbamates—meprobamate, mebutamate, carisoprodol, emylcamate, bethanechol chloride, styramate, hydroxyphenamate, mephenesin carbamate, methocarbamol and chlorphenesin carbamate—were run and compared with their published electron impact spectra. Of the ten compounds run only emylcamate did not give a field desorption mass spectrum. All others gave abundant molecular ions, with the exception of bethanechol chloride which has a quarternary ammonium group and gave a field desorption spectrum characteristic of compounds possessing such a functional group. No general characteristic fragmentation was attributed to the carbamate function in the field desorption mode. However, the ease of obtaining abundant molecular ions or quasimolecular ions makes the field desorption method a valuable complementary technique to electron impact studies of carbama