What absorbs at 3294 cm⁻¹ in an FTIR spectrum?
A band near 3294 cm⁻¹ can point to several functional groups. Below are the most likely assignments, ranked by how much published evidence supports each — every one traceable to literature (DOI) and cross-validated against our 130,000+ reference spectra and knowledge graph.
Backed by 8 cited sources
Quick answer
A band near 3294 cm⁻¹ is usually interpreted by checking which functional groups repeatedly co-occur there in the literature, then confirming at least one or two additional peaks in the same sample. This page ranks those assignments by accumulated evidence rather than by a single fixed textbook rule.
Possible functional-group assignments
| Functional group | Supporting facts | Cited sources | Top confidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hydroxyl (O-H) | 6 | 6 | 1.0 |
| N h | 6 | 6 | 1.0 |
| Alkyl C-H | 2 | 2 | 1.0 |
| Amide | 2 | 2 | 1.0 |
| Lipid | 1 | 1 | 1.0 |
| Carbohydrate | 1 | 1 | 1.0 |
| Protein | 1 | 1 | 1.0 |
| Carboxyl (COOH) | 1 | 1 | 1.0 |
| Water (H2O) | 1 | 1 | 1.0 |
Ranking reflects accumulated literature evidence, not a single fixed rule. Always confirm against your sample context.
Possible materials
| Material | Supporting peaks | Overlapping groups | Cited sources |
|---|---|---|---|
| collagen | 3294, 1408, 1660 | Amide, Alkyl C-H, N h | 1 |
Materials are shown only when the same literature pool supports this band and at least one additional characteristic peak.
Spectrum logic
This band becomes meaningful only when read with its neighboring peaks. In practice, analysts first look at the assignments above, then check whether the same sample also shows other peaks expected for the same structural motif. A lone band near 3294 cm⁻¹ is usually not enough for material identification by itself.
Real-world usage
This type of query is common in polymer identification, unknown plastic screening, QC troubleshooting, recycled-material verification, and literature-backed peak assignment review.
Common mistakes
- Treating one isolated band as proof of a material without checking at least one or two supporting peaks.
- Ignoring overlap: multiple functional groups can contribute near the same wavenumber.
- Skipping validation when additives, blends, oxidation, or contamination may distort the spectrum.
Verification advice
When ambiguity remains, validate the hypothesis with DSC, GC-MS, or TGA, especially for blends, degraded samples, and filled polymers.
Literature behind these assignments
-
Amide confidence 1.0
“Peaks at 3294 (Amide A), 3060 (Amide B), 2871 (CH 3 1544cm-1 symmetric stretching), 1653 (Amide I) and The intensity or area of a particular FTIR absorption”
Igci 等 - 2017 - Application of Fourier transform infrared spectros DOI: 10.17219/acem/65784 -
Water (H2O) confidence 1.0
“standard is particularly convenient as its absorption band thesamplepluswater.WaterexhibitsanintenseIRabsorption cm-1, occurs at a frequency that does not interfere with the water band at 3294 a weak broad absorption band at 2020 cm-1, cm-1”
Lumsdon 和 Fraser - 2005 - Infrared spectroscopic evidence supporting heterog DOI: 10.1021/es050180iCCC -
Hydroxyl (O-H) confidence 1.0
“Text: '3294 corresponds to OH'”
Biogenic Fabrication, Characterization and Drug Loaded Antimicrobial Assay of Silver Nanoparticles Using Centratherum anthalminticum (L.) Kuntze DOI: 10.1016/j.xphs.2021.01.034 -
Amide confidence 1.0
“ATR/FTIR Analysis Leather Samples The collagen-based materials spectra are characterized by amide A at the band cm-1 3294 with an intensity of 0.042 for the new vegetable-tanned leather, and at the”
Fungal Biodeterioration of a Historical Manuscript Dating Back to the 14th Century: An Insight into Various Fungal Strains and Their Enzymatic Activities DOI: 10.3390/life12111821 -
Hydroxyl (O-H) confidence 1.0
“Whereas, the characteristic peaks of PVA polymer at 3294, 2920 and cm(cid:0) 1 O-H C-H 1090 correspond to stretching, stretching and C-O-C stretching respectively [61].”
Akram 等 - 2023 - Fabrication and characterization of antimicrobial DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e17961 -
confidence 1.0
“- 2.0 sin3 1.83 N-H bend 1181 135 N-H(cid:5)(cid:5)(cid:5) stretching 3294”
Ay 和 Aydinli - 2004 - Comparative investigation of hydrogen bonding in s DOI: 10.1016/j.optmat.2003.12.004 -
Alkyl C-H confidence 1.0
“were associated with N-H in-plane bending and CH wagging is characterized at the wavenumber 3294 and for the 2 3276cm-1 vibration of glycine backbone and proline side chain.”
Investigate the role of fungal communities associated with a historical manuscript from the 17th century in biodegradation DOI: 10.1038/s41529-022-00296-4 -
Hydroxyl (O-H) confidence 1.0
“LLM confirmed rule peak-group candidate”
Effects of Ultrasound Treatment on the Physical and Chemical Properties of Ice Cream with a Strawberry Seed Oil Oleogel DOI: 10.3390/su15118975
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