Polyaniline: a conductive polymer coating for durable nanospray emitters

Area of Science:

• Analytical Chemistry
• Materials Science

Background:

• Conventional electrospray ionization (ESI) has limitations in sensitivity and sample requirements.
• Metallized nanospray emitters often face challenges with mechanical stability or complex fabrication.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a simple, robust, and cost-effective alternative to metallized nanospray emitters.
• To utilize conductive polyaniline (PANI) for enhanced nanospray performance.

Main Methods:

• Coating borosilicate emitters with water-soluble and xylene-soluble conductive polyaniline (PANI) dispersions.
• Characterizing the mechanical stability, conductivity, and optical properties of PANI-coated emitters.
• Comparing the performance of PANI-coated emitters against gold-coated and conventional ESI emitters.

Main Results:

• PANI-coated emitters demonstrated high durability and resistance to electrical discharge.
• The optically transparent PANI coating allows for visualization of the sample plug.
• PANI-coated emitters provided sensitivity comparable to gold-coated emitters and superior to conventional ESI.

Conclusions:

• Polyaniline (PANI) offers a viable, stable, and easily fabricated alternative for nanospray emitter coatings.
• PANI-coated emitters enhance sensitivity and durability for mass spectrometry applications.
• This method simplifies the production of high-performance nanospray emitters.