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Atmospheric-pressure Penning ionization mass spectrometry
Kenzo Hiraoka1, Susumu Fujimaki, Shizuka Kambara
1Clean Energy Research Center, University of Yamanashi, Takeda-4, Kofu 400-8511, Japan. hiraoka@ab11.yamanashi.ac.jp
Rapid Communications in Mass Spectrometry : RCM
|September 24, 2004
Summary
Atmospheric-pressure Penning ionization (APP(e)I) uses metastable argon to ionize organic compounds. This selective method shows promise as a highly sensitive interface for gas chromatography/mass spectrometry.
Area of Science:
- Analytical Chemistry
- Mass Spectrometry
- Chemical Ionization
Background:
- Metastable argon atoms (Ar*) possess high internal energy (11.55-11.72 eV).
- Corona discharge is a known method for generating excited species.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the feasibility of atmospheric-pressure Penning ionization (APP(e)I) for gaseous organic compounds.
- To evaluate APP(e)I as a selective and sensitive interface for mass spectrometry.
Main Methods:
- Generation of metastable argon (Ar*) via negative-mode corona discharge.
- Ionization of gaseous organic compounds using Ar* at atmospheric pressure.
- Analysis of formed ions using an orthogonal time-of-flight mass spectrometer.
Main Results:
- APP(e)I successfully ionized alkanes, aromatics, and oxygen-containing compounds.
- Major ions observed were molecular-related.
- Ionization was selective, occurring only for molecules with ionization energies below Ar* internal energy.
Conclusions:
- APP(e)I is a viable technique for ionizing organic compounds.
- The selectivity of APP(e)I makes it suitable for complex mixture analysis.
- This method offers a highly sensitive interface for gas chromatography/mass spectrometry.