Issue 20, 2015

Evaluation of drift gas selection in complex sample analyses using a high performance drift tube ion mobility-QTOF mass spectrometer

Abstract

A recently developed uniform-field high resolution ion mobility (IM) quadrupole time of flight (Q-TOF) mass spectrometer is used for evaluating the utility of alternate drift gases for complex sample analyses. This study provides collision cross section comparison for 275 total pesticides including structural isomers in nitrogen, helium, carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide and sulfur hexafluoride drift gases. Furthermore, a set of small molecules and Agilent tune mix compounds were used to study the trends in experimentally derived collision cross section values in argon and the alternate drift gases. Two isomeric trisaccharides, melezitose and raffinose, were used to evaluate the effect of the drift gasses for mobility separation. The hybrid ion mobility Q-TOF mass analyzer used in this study consists of a low pressure uniform field drift tube apparatus coupled to a high resolution Q-TOF mass spectrometer. Conventionally, low pressure ion mobility instruments are operated using helium drift gas to obtain optimal structural information and collision cross-section (CCS) values that compare to theoretical CCS values. The instrument employed in this study uses nitrogen as the standard drift gas but also allows the utility of alternate drift gases for improved structural analysis and selectivity under certain conditions. The use of alternate drift gases with a wide range of polarizabilities allows the evaluation of mobility separation power in terms of induced dipole interactions between the drift gas and the analyte ions.

Graphical abstract: Evaluation of drift gas selection in complex sample analyses using a high performance drift tube ion mobility-QTOF mass spectrometer

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
16 may 2015
Accepted
09 iyl 2015
First published
10 iyl 2015

Analyst, 2015,140, 6834-6844

Author version available

Evaluation of drift gas selection in complex sample analyses using a high performance drift tube ion mobility-QTOF mass spectrometer

Ruwan. T. Kurulugama, E. Darland, F. Kuhlmann, G. Stafford and J. Fjeldsted, Analyst, 2015, 140, 6834 DOI: 10.1039/C5AN00991J

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