Effect of method of ion preparation on low-energy collision-induced dissociation mass spectra

The collision-induced dissociation (CID) mass spectra of protonated cocaine and protonated heroin have been measured using a triple quadrupole mass spectrometer at 50 eV ion/neutral collision energy for protonated molecules prepared by different protonating agents. The CID mass spectra of protonated cocaine using H⁺(H₂O)_n, H⁺(NH₃)_n and H⁺((CH₃)₂NH)_n as protonating agents are essentially identical and it is concluded that, regardless of the initial site of protonation, the fragmentation reactions occurring on collisional activation are identical. By contrast, protonated heorin prepared with H⁺(H₂O)_n and H⁺(NH₃)_n as protonating agents show substantial differences. That formed by reaction of H⁺(H₂O)_n shows a much more abundant peak corresponding to loss of CH₃CO₂H. From a comparison with model compounds, and from a consideration of the three-dimensional structure of heroin, it is concluded that with H⁺(H₂O)_n as protonating agent significant protonation occurs at the acetate group attached to the alicyclic ring, leading to acetic acid loss on collisional activation, but that reaction of H⁺(NH₃)_n leads to protonation at the nitrogen function. The proton attached to nitrogen cannot interact with the acetate group and, consequently, the probability of loss of acetic acid on collislional activation is greatly reduced.