Dear Sir. Concerning your issue about how to analyse formate by gas chromatography. A simple routine method for quantitative measurement of endogenous formic acid in samples using headspace gas chromatography-flame ionization detection. (GC-FID). Two-hundred microliters of sample was placed in a 1-mL glass vial. Fifty microliters of aqueous ethanol (10%) was added as an internal standard and a derivatizing agent. Ethylformate formation was enhanced by addition of 200 microL concentrated sulfuric acid as a catalyst. The vials were then sealed immediately and placed in a water bath for 15 min at 60 degrees C. One milliliter of this headspace gas was siphoned using a gas-tight syringe and injected into a GC-FID fitted with a capillary column. Ethanol eluted at approximately 3.0 min, and ethylformate eluted around 4.7 min. The limit of quantitation for ethylformate was 0.026 mmol/L, and the limit of detection was 0.020 mmol/L. Imprecisions for spiked plasma samples at 0.25 and 1 mmol/L were 10% and 9%, respectively and recoveries were at 100% and 108%, respectively. A simple, reliable, and highly specific headspace analysis method for quantifying endogenous formate without the use of a headspace analyzer was developed. This method enables the routine clinical analysis of formate in plasma and whole blood samples. I think the following below links may help you in your analysis:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17725880

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2733395

http://www.appliedrestoxicol.com/Artigos/Vol1Num1/Art_06.pdf

Thanks

See attached

https://www.phenomenex.com/Application/Detail/16140?returnURL=/Compound?id=Methyl+formate~page=1~t=~sM=~p=

You can use the polar column (BDWAX, BD624), in CG-FID, at the process of your samples you can use the paper that the Dr. Isam say, the conditions of the equipment are similar to this publication (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17725880).

regards

Aris