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Updated: Jun 10, 2025

Single-throughput Complementary High-resolution Analytical Techniques for Characterizing Complex Natural Organic Matter Mixtures
Published on: January 7, 2019
Ion Source Complementarity for Characterization of Complex Organic Mixtures Using Fourier Transform Mass
Charlotte Mase1,2,3, Maxime Sueur1,2, Hélène Lavanant1,2
1Univ Rouen Normandie, INSA Rouen Normandie, CNRS, Normandie Univ, COBRA UMR 6014, INC3M FR 3038, Rouen, France.
None:
Complex organic mixtures are found in many areas of research, such as energy, environment, health, planetology, and cultural heritage, to name but a few. However, due to their complex chemical composition, which holds an extensive potential of information at the molecular level, their molecular characterization is challenging. In mass spectrometry, the ionization step is the key step, as it determines which species will be detected. This review presents an overview of the main ionization sources employed to characterize these kinds of samples in Fourier transform mass spectrometry (FT-MS), namely electrospray (ESI), atmospheric pressure photoionization (APPI), atmospheric pressure chemical ionization (APCI), atmospheric pressure laser ionization (APLI), and (matrix-assisted) laser desorption ionization ((MA)LDI), and their complementarity in the characterization of complex organic mixtures. First, the ionization techniques are examined in the common direct introduction (DI) usage. Second, these approaches are discussed in the context of coupling chromatographic techniques such as gas chromatography, liquid chromatography, and supercritical fluid chromatography.
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