High-Resolution continuum-source atomic absorption spectrometry in an inductively coupled plasma with photodiode array detection

Atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS) is a well established technique using flames and graphite furnaces. An inductively coupled plasma (ICP), however, is an attractive alternative atom/ion reservoir. A high-resolution continuum-source atomic absorption spectrometer with a photodiode array detector and an ICP as the atomization/ionization reservoir is described. Multi-wavelength capability permits the simultaneous determination of several elements by their atomic and/or ionic transitions. Each acquired spectrum is averaged for 10 s to improve the signal-to-noise ratios. Detection limits are calculated for 14 elements and compared with literature values.     

An echelle polychromator for inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy with vacuum ultraviolet wavelength coverage and charge injection device detection

The development and evaluation of a simultaneous inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometer with vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) wavelength coverage and charge injection device (CID) detection are described. The spectrometer is an echelle polychromator with a magnesium fluoride prism as a cross-disperser. A thin coating of Lumogen, used as a wavelength conversion phosphor, is applied to the surface of the CID detector. The Lumogen coating increases sensitivity in the VUV region dramatically. Wavelengths between 130 and 800 nm can be measured by this spectrometer. A measured spectral bandwidth of 0.006 nm at 134.724 nm is achieved. The analytical performance in radial viewing mode is evaluated. The 3σ detection limit measured for Cl at 134.724 nm in aqueous solution is 100 ng ml⁻¹.     

电荷注入检测器电感耦合等离子体光谱仪的稀土元素分析性能

研究了电荷注入检测器电感耦合等离子体发射光谱（ＣＩＤ－ＩＣＰＥＳ）测定稀土元素的分析性能。结果表明,在稀土元素常用谱线波段内（２６０～４４０ｎｍ）光谱背影发射强度低于４０ＣＰＳ（计数／秒）,ＲＳＤ〈０．６％。研究了谱线强度和相对标准偏差的关系,当谱线强度高于５ＣＰＳ时,对于任何稀土元素谱线的ＲＳＤ均低于０．６％。谱线强度降低时,ＲＳＤ逐渐增大。文中给出了稀土元素常用分析谱线的强度值、线背比、背影等     

Software package for quantitative analysis of solid materials by energy-dispersive x-ray fluorescence spectrometry without absolute calibration

A software package for quantifying elements in solids from energy-dispersive x-ray fluorescence data is described. The algorithm is based on the fundamental parameter approach and facilitates the simultaneous determination of several elements at widely varying concentrations. The software comprises three programs. One program, for spectrometer control and data acquisition, resides in a dedicated microcomputer. The two other programs, for spectra deconvulution and data evaluation, reside in a larger central computer. On-line communication between the computers is feasible, and the system facilitates the implementation of new improved programs. The performance of the system was tested on standard reference materials, and satisfactory accuracy was obtained for up to 21 elements.     

A Novel Spectrometer for Simultaneous Chemical Analyses

A novel spectrometer incorporating a multichannel detector for simultaneous multi-element atomic emission spectrometry (AES) is described. The spectrometer consists of a multi-bandpass optical filter comprised of a concave and a fiat grating in substractive mode, and a high resolution stage which utilizes an echelle grating and an one inch 1024-channel photodiode array as the detector. Characterization with respect to the spectral resolution, the spectral response, and the capability of multi-element detection demonstrated the systems's potential for simultaneous chemical analyses without moving any mechanical parts. To adjust the system for the analyses of different sets of elements, the corresponding mask is simply placed in position.     

Multielement Analysis of Whole Blood Using a Capacitively Coupled Microwave Plasma Atomic Emission Spectrometer

A capacitively coupled microwave plasma atomic emission spectrometer (CMP-AES) has been evaluated as a means for the direct analysis of several of the primary and trace elements in whole blood. A tungsten filament spiral electrode was used with the CMP, and whole blood samples were deposited on the electrode and subsequently dried, ashed, and atomized. The emission was measured with a spectrometer and a charge-coupled-device detector. A sample size of only 2 μl was required and the time for each sample run was under 4 min. This method has a wide dynamic range, allowing the determination of both the primary elements in blood and elements present in trace quantities. Potassium, sodium, lithium, magnesium, manganese, and zinc were studied. Good linearity was observed and the concentration levels obtained for these elements were consistent with literature values. The primary advantages of this method are that no sample pretreatment or dilution is required, the instrument cost is low, and the method is capable of simultaneous multielement analysis on small, discrete samples.     

A multiple grating flame photometer for the simultaneous determination of five elements

A flame emission spectrometer for the simultaneous determination of five elements has been constructed. The instrument is built around a special holographic diffraction grating, built up from several smaller gratings with different ruling characteristics, each covering a different spectral range. It is provided with automatic background correction and a photon counting system. Sensitivity and precision are good. The instrument is compared with other multichannel flame emission systems. Construction of the spectrometer including electronics is described.     

Simultaneous determination by iterative spectrophotometric detection in a closed flow system

A flow-injection configuration based on a closed flow system which includes a single spectrophotometric detector and allows iterative detection by passage of the reacting plug n times through the same detector is described. The information obtained can be used in the simultaneous determination of species by kinetic methods. The example given is the simultaneous determiantion of iron(III) and cobalt(II) via the EGTA/PAR ligand displacement reaction.     

Anion-exchange high-performance liquid chromatography of water-soluble chromium (VI) and chromium (III) complexes in biological materials

A high-performance anion-exchange liquid chromatograph coupled to visible-range (370 nm) and UV (280 nm) detectors and an atomic-absorption spectrometer allowed the rapid determination of CrVI and/or complexes of CrIII in rat plasma, erythrocyte lysate and liver supernatant treated with CrVI or CrIII in vitro. CrVI in the eluates was determined using both the visible-range detector and atomic-absorption spectrometer (AAS). The detection limits of CrVI in standard solutions using these methods were 2 and 5 ng (signal-to-noise ratio = 2), respectively. Separations of the biological components and of CrIII complexes were monitored by UV and AAS analyses, respectively. Time-related decreases of CrVI accompanied by increases in CrIII complexes were observed, indicating the reduction of CrVI by some of the biological components. The reduction rates were considerably higher in the liver supernatant and erythrocyte lysate than in the plasma. These results indicate that the anion-exchange high-performance liquid chromatographic system is useful for simultaneous determination of CrVI and CrIII complexes in biological materials.     

Development of a tandem time‐of‐flight mass spectrometer with an electrospray ionization ion source

A new tandem time‐of‐flight mass spectrometer with an electrospray ionization ion source ‘ESI‐TOF/quadTOF’ was designed and constructed to achieve the desired aim of structural elucidation via high‐energy collision‐induced dissociation (CID), and the simultaneous detection of all fragment ions. The instrument consists of an orthogonal acceleration‐type ESI ion source, a linear TOF mass spectrometer, a collision cell, a quadratic‐field ion mirror and a microchannel plate detector. High‐energy CID spectra of doubly protonated angiotensin II and bradykinin were obtained. Several fragment ions such as a‐, d‐, v‐ and w‐type ions, characteristic of high‐energy CID, were clearly observed in these spectra. These high‐energy CID fragment ions enabled confirmation of the complete sequence, including leucine–isoleucine determinations. It was demonstrated that high‐energy CID of multiply protonated peptides could be achieved in the ESI‐TOF/quadTOF. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Simultaneous acquisition of X-ray spectra using a multi-wire, position-sensitive gas flow detector

A multi-wire, gas-filled position-sensitive detector has been developed for the simultaneous recording of wavelength-dispersed X-ray signals that enables X-ray fluorescence spectrometry with a limited multi-element capability in the low Z element range. Details of the modular construction of the detector are given. The detector performance was characterized using Al–K radiation and a variable slit system. The detector has been applied in a laboratory spectrometer equipped with an electron source and a double multilayer mirror device as the wavelength-dispersing element. Spectra from Al and Si obtained in the simultaneous acquisition mode show good agreement with calculations performed using a ray-tracing model.     

微波消解–ICP–AES法测定装甲材料中的铌含量

建立ICP–AES法测定装甲材料中铌含量的的方法。采用盐酸–硝酸–氢氟酸微波消解样品,检测器为CID固态检测器,检测波长为309.417 nm。在选定的测定条件下,标准工作曲线线性范围为0.005%~1.0%,线性相关系数为0.999 7,检出限为0.000 68%,测定结果的相对标准偏差不大于3%(n=10),加标回收率为96.0%~98.7%。该方法操作简单,测定结果准确可靠,可用于装甲材料中铌含量的测定。     

Pattern-based algorithm for peptide sequencing from tandem high energy collision-induced dissociation mass spectra

A new strategy is reported for extracting complete and partial sequence information from collision-induced dissociation (CID) spectra of peptides, CID spectra are obtained from high energy CID of peptide molecular ions on a four-sector tandem mass spectrometer with an electro-optically coupled microchannel array detector, A peak detection routine reduces the spectrum to a list of peak masses and peak heights, which is then used for sequencing, The sequencing algorithm was designed to use spectral data to generate sequence fits directly rather than to use data to test the fit of series of sequence guesses. The peptide sequencing algorithm uses a pattern based on the polymeric nature of peptides to classify spectral peaks into sets that are related in a sequence-independent manner, It then establishes sequence relationships among these sets, Peak detection from raw data takes 10–20 s, with sequence generation requiring an additional 10–60 s on a Sun 3/60 workstation, The program is written in the C language to run on a Unix platform. The principal advantages of our method are in the speed of analysis and the potential for identifying modified or rare amino acids. The algorithm was designed to permit real-time sequencing but awaits hardware modifications to allow real-time access to CID spectra.     

Tungsten coil atomic emission spectrometry

A tungsten coil atomic emission spectrometer is described and evaluated. The system employs a single tungsten coil as a combined atomizer and excitation source for the determination of metals by atomic emission spectrometry. The tungsten coil is extracted from a 150 W, 15 V commercial slide projector light bulb. A simple, laboratory constructed, computer-controlled power supply provides a constant current to the coil. A high-resolution Czerny–Turner monochromator with a charge coupled device detector completes the system. Simultaneous, multi-element analyses are possible within a 4 nm spectral window. Eleven test elements are used to characterize the system: Al (396.1 nm), Co (353.0 nm), Cr (427.1 nm), Dy (404.6 nm), Ga (403.3 nm), K (404.4 nm), Mn (403.1 nm), Pb (405.8 nm), Rb (420.2 nm), Sc (404.8 nm), and Yb (398.7 nm). Tungsten coil atomic emission detection limits are reported for these elements for the first time: 0.02 ng Al, 0.7 ng Co, 0.003 ng Cr, 0.01 ng Dy, 0.7 ng Ga, 0.3 ng K, 0.04 ng Mn, 10 ng Pb, 0.07 ng Rb, 1 ng Sc, and 0.003 ng Yb. The precision for the new technique is better than 13% relative standard deviation for all metals at concentrations two orders of magnitude above the detection limit. Aluminum, Cr, Mn, and K are determined in a standard reference material (trace elements in water) after simple dilution with water, and found values varied from certified values by up to 26%. The average tungsten coil lifetime was found to be 265 heating cycles. The elimination of the external radiation source needed for atomic absorption measurements results in an emission system that could be quite portable.     

Instrumental charged-particle activation analysis of several selected elements in biological materials using the internal standard method

In order to study instrumental charged-particle activation analysis using the internal standard method, simultaneous determination of several selected elements, such as Ca, Ti, V, Fe, Zn, As, Sr, Zr and Mo, in oyster tissue, brewer's yeast and mussel has been examined by using the respective (p, n) reactions and a personal computer-based gamma-ray spectrometer equipped with a micro-robot for sample changing. In the above determination, constant amounts of Y and La were added to the sample and comparative standard as exotic internal standards. As a result, it was demonstrated that concentrations of the above elements can be determined accurately and precisely.     

电感耦合等离子体原子发射光谱法(ICP-OES)测定水系沉积物中6种重金属元素

建立了自动消解仪消解-电感耦合等离子体原子发射光谱法(ICP-OES)同时测定水系沉积物中Cu,Zn,Ni,Cr,Pb,Co 6种元素含量的方法。方法中6种元素的检出限为0.000 2~0.02mg/L,工作曲线的相关系数均大于0.999。方法经国家标准物质(GBW07361)验证,准确度和精密度均能达到环境监测分析的要求,为水系沉积物中重金属元素含量的测定提供了简单可靠的分析方法。     

Preliminary evaluation of laser induced breakdown spectroscopy for slurry samples

Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) was applied to the analysis of simulant slurry samples used in the vitrification process of liquid radioactive wastes. A spectroscopic analysis was performed by two different detection systems: Czerny-Turner spectrometer coupled with intensified diode array detector (IDAD) and an Echelle spectrometer with intensified charge coupled device (ICCD). For the Czerny-Turner detection system, the normalized intensity method, which is the normalization of the atomic emission intensity by the released whole plasma emission area intensity, was employed to improve the reproducibility of LIBS signals. The Echelle detection system showed a high efficiency in simultaneous multi-element detection and determination of the physical quantities of the simulant.     

Determination of butyl- and phenyltin compounds in human urine by HS-SPME after derivatization with tetraethylborate and subsequent determination by capillary GC with microwave-induced plasma atomic emission and mass spectrometric detection

A headspace solid-phase micro-extraction (HS-SPME) method was developed and optimized for gas chromatographic separation and determination of commonly found organotin compounds in human urine after potential exposure. Butyl- and phenyltin compounds were in situ derivatized to ethylated derivatives by sodium tetraethylborate (NaBEt₄) directly in the urine matrix. The relevant parameters affecting the yield of the SPME procedure were examined using tetrabutyltin as internal standard. The method was optimized for direct use in the analysis of undiluted human urine samples and mono-, di- and tri-substituted butyl- and phenyltin compounds could be determined after a 15-min headspace extraction time at room temperature. The selectivity of the microwave-induced plasma atomic emission detector (MIP-AED) as an element specific detector in combination with the relatively selective sample preparation technique of HS-SPME allowed the interference-free detection of the organotin compounds in all cases. A quadrupole mass spectrometer was used in parallel experiments as a detector for the confirmation of the identity molecular structure of the eluted compounds. The performance characteristics of the developed method are given for the determination of mixtures of these compounds. Finally the proposed method was applied to the analysis of several human urine samples.     

The application of liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization mass spectrometry and collision-induced dissociation in the structural characterization of acylated flavonol O-glycosides from the seeds of Carrichtera annua

The flavonoid fraction from the seeds of Carrichtera annua was studied using high-performance liquid chromatography simultaneously coupled to a photodiode array detector (LC/UV-DAD) and a mass spectrometer equipped with an electrospray source (LC/ESI-MS). Collision-induced dissociation (CID) mass spectral data obtained off-line by nanospray (nano-ESI) analysis provided a wealth of complementary structural information, which was consistent with structures established by NMR or led to the proposal of base structures of the flavonol O-glycosides present in the Carrichtera annua seed extract. The flavonoid fraction was found to contain 12 structurally related flavonol O-glycosides. Eleven flavonoids, of which several were new compounds, were acylated with one or more benzoyl, feruloyl or sinapoyl groups. These acyl groups gave rise to characteristic product ions in the [M + H](+) and [M + Na](+) CID spectra as well as to radicalar acid-related product ions at high-energy collisional activation. In addition to the characterization of the acyl substituents, the mass spectral data allowed the identification of the aglycone, the determination of the base structure and the differentiation of several positional isomers.     

Optimization of matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight collision-induced dissociation using poly(ethylene glycol)

Details of the optimization of the collision-induced dissociation (CID) process, using a collision cell on a matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization (MALDI) time-of-flight (TOF) mass spectrometer, are described using poly(ethylene glycol) 1000 (PEG 1000) as a model analyte. The effects of collision gas identity (helium, air, and argon), as well as collision gas pressure, on the resulting MS/MS data were investigated. With PEG 1000, helium was found to give the best results with respect to signal-to-noise (S/N) ratio. The optimum pressure for each gas was found to be in the range where the precursor ion signal was attenuated to approximately 30-50% for helium and 40-60% for argon. The effect of cation choice (Li, Na, and K) on the CID of PEG was also studied. CID spectra were produced for each, but PEG cationized with lithium was found to produce the spectra with the highest S/N ratio. The MALDI-TOF CID spectra that were generated for PEG were compared with the high-energy and low-energy MS/MS spectra obtained from a sector mass spectrometer and from a triple quadrupole mass spectrometer, respectively. The results observed for PEG confirm that CID on a MALDI-TOF mass spectrometer is a high-energy MS/MS technique.