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Updated: Nov 19, 2025

Characterization of Synthetic Polymers via Matrix Assisted Laser Desorption Ionization Time of Flight MALDI-TOF Mass Spectrometry
Published on: June 10, 2018
Localized Quantitative Analysis of Polymeric Films through Laser Ablation-Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass
Ángela Villaseñor1, Raquel Sánchez1, Marina Boccongelli2
1Department of Analytical Chemistry, Nutrition and Food Sciences, University of Alicante, P.O. Box 99, 03080 Alicante, Spain.
Abstract:
The present work shows, for the first time, the application of laser ablation connected to inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) to the localized quantitative analysis of inclusions in polymeric industrial films. The multielemental mapping capabilities of LA-ICP-MS has allowed to chemically examine unique defects appeared during the plastic processing. This analytical tool is perfectly suited to detect elements such as Al, Mg, Zr, Ti, Cr, P, Pb, Sb, Zn, and Si in those inclusions. A method for multielemental quantitative analysis of these defects has been developed in the present work. The profiling for more than 100 different defects in three samples has demonstrated that more than 50% of these inclusions contain aggregates of some of the aforementioned elements. Therefore, the distribution of elements used as additives or present in catalysts must be carefully controlled during the production of polymeric films in order to avoid degradation in their performance.
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