Continuous-flow fast atom bombardment mass spectrometry

The continuous-flow fast atom bombardment probe performs equally well with or without a high-performance liquid chromatography column producing clean spectra containing little or no background noise. Its function as a liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry interface for labile and involatile samples has been illustrated with reference to dansylated amino acids. The versatility of the new probe has been exemplified by on-line enzymatic peptide sequencing.     

The acid effect in fast atom bombardment

The effects on fast atom bombardment (FAB) mass spectra of analyte bases in glycerol on adding acids were investigated. The MH⁺ ion intensity usually increased but sometimes decreases were also found. For the practical use of FAB, it is importaat to clarify the reasons for this acid effect. By critical evaluation, a variety of different explanations were found, e.g. changes in solubility, surface activity, volatility, radiation-induced chemistry and desorption energetics. No unambiguous examples of efficient preformed ion formation were found. However, it is still possible that preformed ion formation may be important in the uppermost surface layer. The mechanistic implications of these findings are briefly discussed.     

Chemical reactions in fast atom bombardment mass spectrometry

Examples of various chemical reactions occurring in the matrix or in the selvedge region in fast atom bombardment (FAB) mass spectrometry are discussed. These are categorized as oxidations and reductions; substitutions; clusterings and additions; and sample decomposition or transformation. Some reactions observed showed significant time behaviour and in one case it was possible to determine rate constants. These data suggest that chemical reactions can be accelerated significantly by fast atom bombardment.     

m-nitrobenzyl alcohol electrochemistry in fast atom bombardment mass spectrometry

The efficacy of m-nitrobenzyl alcohol (NBA) as a solvent (matrix) for fast atom bombardment (FAB) mass spectrometry of a group of pyrazolate-bridged dirhodium A-frame complexes has been assessed. Although NBA is frequently used to mitigate the formation of artifacts in FAB/MS of organometallics and other materials susceptible to bombardment-induced reactions, substantial evidence indicates that such reactions cause the formation of artifacts in the spectra obtained here. Parallel absorption spectroscopic studies have established that NBA is capable of inducing both oxidation and reduction reactions independent of ion bombardment, depending on analyte reduction half-wave potential (E_1/2). From the known electrochemistry of the complexes studied, it can be estimated that 1020 mV > E_1/2 > 500 mV for the reaction of NBA serving as a reducing agent, while 500 mV > E_1/2 > 424 mV for the reduction potential of NBA. However, in the presence of bombardment the former E_1/2 must be at least as low as 356 mY, and the latter E_1/2 must be at least as high as 1188 mY. The kinetics of redox reactions involving NBA, and therefore their influence on the appearance of FAB mass spectra, will be highly sample-dependent. However, this study illustrates an important potential role for redox reactions when NBA is used as a solvent, especially in the presence of bombardment in FAB/MS. Although analyte reaction products could be identified, substantial efforts aimed at identifying NBA oxidation and reduction products did not yield any definitive results due to the complexity of product mixtures.     

Organic cluster ions from continuous-flow fast atom bombardment

Cluster ions from fast atom bombardment of liquid alcohols and nitriles were examined using a continuous-flow technique. Protonated molecular M_nH⁺ species are the dominant cluster ions observed in molecules of formula M. The abundances of the M_nH⁺ cluster ions decrease monotonically with increasing n, and within a homologous series the M_nH⁺ abundance diminishes more rapidly for higher molecular mass compounds. Reaction products (ROH)_n(H₂O)H⁺ and (ROH)_n(ROR)H⁺ are observed also in the case of alcohols, and the ion abundances decrease with increasing n. Radiation damage yields fragment ions and ionic alkyl reaction products which are captured in solvent clusters. Semi-empirical molecular orbital methods were used to examine the energetics of cluster ion formation and decomposition pathways. Metastable decomposition processes exhibit only evaporative loss of monomers, with the probability of loss increasing sharply with n. The evaporative ensemble model of Klots was used to predict the cluster size-dependent trends of metastable dissociation processes observed for alcohol and nitrile cluster ions.     

Continuous-flow fast atom bombardment mass spectrometry of oligonucleotides

Although frit-fast atom bombardment (frit-FAB) and continuous-flow FAB mass spectrometry have become standard methods for the analysis of peptides and peptide mixtures, these techniques have not been applied previously to the analysis of oligonucleotides. Mobilephase composition, flow rate, and sample size were optimized for the analysis of oligonucleotides by negative ion frit-FAB mass spectrometry (a type of continuous-flow FAB mass spectrometry). With a mobile phase consisting of methanol/water/triethanolamine (80:20:0.5, v/v/w), flow injection frit-FAB analysis of oligonucleotides showed lower limits of detection compared to standard probe FAB mass spectrometry. For example, in order to obtain a signal-to-noise ratio of 3:1, 38 prnol of d(GTIAAC) were required for frit-FAB mass spectrometry and 62 pmol were required for standard probe FAB mass spectrometry. The largest difference between frit-FAB and standard probe FAB was observed for d(pC)₅, for which the limit of detection by frit-FAB was approximately 11-fold lower than by standard FAB mass spectrometry. Adjustment of the mobile phase to pH 7 with trifluoroacetic acid increased the limit of detection (reduced sensitivity) a minimum of sixfold. Equimolar mixtures of two or three oligonucleotides produced deprotonated molecules in identical relative abundances whether analyzed by frit-FAB or standard probe FAB mass spectrometry. Finally, frit-FAB liquid chromatography mass spectrometry was demonstrated by separating mixtures of oligonucleotides on a β -cyclodextrin high-performance liquid chromatography column with a mobile phase containing methanol, water, and triethanolamine.     

Matrix effects in the fast atom bombardment protonation of carbohydrates

FAB positive mass spectra of trehalose in the presence of different matrices such as glycerol, diethanolamine (DEA) and triethanolamine (TEA) are presented and discussed. Protonated and solvated protonated trehalose ions are observed, of which the relative abundance changes with the liquid matrix used. MIKE spectra of the protonated molecular ions solvated by the matrix show unambiguously that desolvation contributes to the formation of protonated molecular ions. It is shown that the decomposition of these complexes is mainly controlled by the relative proton affinities of the analysed sample and the matrix.     

Behaviour of methyl red under fast atom bombardment conditions

The influence of the pH, the nature of the matrix and the presence of a surfactant on the positive- and negative-ion abundances in the molecular mass region in the fast atom bombardment (FAB) mass spectra of methyl red was investigated. A small but significant pH effect was observed which was attributed to the non- or at the most low surface-active character of the intact methyl red molecule. As expected, the more basic the solution, the less protonated molecules with respect to M⁺˙ are observed and in the negative-ion mode less [M + H]^? and more [M – H]^? ions with respect to M^?˙ were found. In contrast to neutral solutions, both acidic and basic solutions give a long-lasting stable response of all methyl red ions. For dyes with a moderately negative redox potential such as methyl red, beam-induced redox reactions seem to play a role in the ionization process, the neutral medium offering the best conditions for reduction processes. The ion intensities in the molecular mass region depend on the nature of the matrix. Protonation of the molecule has been found to be more effective in glycerol than in 3-nitrobenzyl alcohol; the former also appears to offer the best conditions for reduction processes. Anionic and cationic surfactants effectively suppress the contribution of ions from glycerol in both positive- and negative-ion spectra and generally promote the formation of analyte ions at the surface. The most important effect of the surfactant in a neutral medium seems to be the promotion of a regular transport of ions and molecules to the surface, which permits the creation of stable ion currents, instead of an unstable ion beam if the surfactant is absent. Moreover, when the surfactant is present an increase of the sample ion abundances is observed. Redox reactions involving molecules and molecular ions and also molecules and preformed ions in the solution, brought to the surface by micelles, have been proposed to give some contribution for the small but significant enhanced abundance of [M + nH]⁺ (n > 1) ions with respect to [M + H]⁺ ions, in the presence of a surfactant. The results have been rationalized in terms of the surface phenomena while the important role of surfactants for obtaining better FAB mass spectra is emphasized.     

Mass spectrometry of arenediazonium salts by fast atom bombardment

Contrary to expectation, thermally labile arenediazonium salts (M) afford sizeable peaks due to ArN₂ ⁺ and (ArN₂ ⁺)M ions under fast atom bombardment; the main fragment ion is usually the highly reactive aryl cation Ar⁺, the production of which is independent of whether its ground state is singlet or triplet.     

'Bubble chamber model' of fast atom bombardment induced processes

A hypothesis concerning FAB mechanisms, referred to as a 'bubble chamber FAB model', is proposed. This model can provide an answer to the long-standing question as to how fragile biomolecules and weakly bound clusters can survive under high-energy particle impact on liquids. The basis of this model is a simple estimation of saturated vapour pressure over the surface of liquids, which shows that all liquids ever tested by fast atom bombardment (FAB) and liquid secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) were in the superheated state under the experimental conditions applied. The result of the interaction of the energetic particles with superheated liquids is known to be qualitatively different from that with equilibrium liquids. It consists of initiation of local boiling, i.e., in formation of vapour bubbles along the track of the energetic particle. This phenomenon has been extensively studied in the framework of nuclear physics and provides the basis for construction of the well-known bubble chamber detectors. The possibility of occurrence of similar processes under FAB of superheated liquids substantiates a conceptual model of emission of secondary ions suggested by Vestal in 1983, which assumes formation of bubbles beneath the liquid surface, followed by their bursting accompanied by release of microdroplets and clusters as a necessary intermediate step for the creation of molecular ions. The main distinctive feature of the bubble chamber FAB model, proposed here, is that the bubbles are formed not in the space and time-restricted impact-excited zone, but in the nearby liquid as a 'normal' boiling event, which implies that the temperature both within the bubble and in the droplets emerging on its burst is practically the same as that of the bulk liquid sample. This concept can resolve the paradox of survival of intact biomolecules under FAB, since the part of the sample participating in the liquid-gas transition via the bubble mechanism has an ambient temperature which is not destructive for biomolecules. Another important feature of the model is that the timescale of bubble growth is no longer limited by the relaxation time of the excited zone ( approximately 10(-12) s), but rather resembles the timescale characteristic of common boiling, sufficient for multiple interactions of gas molecules and formation of clusters. Further, when the bubbles burst, microdroplets are released, which implies that FAB processes are similar to those in spraying techniques. Thus, two processes contribute to the ion production, namely, release of volatile solvent clusters from bubbles and of non-volatile solute from sputtered droplets. This view reconciles contradictory views on the dominance of either gas-phase or liquid-phase effects in FAB. Some other effects, such as suppression of all other ions by surface-active compounds, are consistent with the suggested model.     

Mechanism for dehalogenation reactions in fast atom bombardment mass spectrometry

The mechanism of a dehalogenation reaction that occurs during fast atom bombardment (FAB) mass spectrometry was examined using halogenated nucleosides as model compounds. For aglycone-halogenated nucleosides, an inverse linear relationship exists between the extent of FAB dehalogenation and the calculated electron affinity of an individual nucleoside. The degree of dehalogenation for a given nucleoside also varies inversely with the calculated electron affinity of most FAB matrices. The observed dehalogenation reaction can be completely inhibited when matrices with positive electron affinities, such as 3-nitrobenzyl alcohol and 2-hydroxyethyl disulfide, are used. High-performance liquid chromatographic analysis of the bulk glycerol matrix following exposure to the FAB beam indicates measurable amounts of dehalogenated product, suggesting that this reaction occurs in the condensed phase prior to gas-phase ion formation. A dehalogenation mechanism involving thermal electron capture and subsequent negative charge stabilization is consistent with these observations.     

The fast atom bombardment mass spectra of xanthane dyes

The Fast Atom Bombardment mass spectra of a number of xanthane dyes are reported. These dyes are insufficiently volatile to give spectra by conventional electron impact ionization. Fragmentation pathways have been determined by metastable linked scan techniques and accurate masses obtained by peak matching. The xanthane dyes may be readily identified from their FAB spectra by the presence of characteristic ions.     

Negative-ion fast atom bombardment mass spectrometry of N-phosphoamino acids

The fragmentation patterns of N-phosphoamino acids in negative-ion fast atom bombardment mass spectrometry (FABMS) showed different characteristics to those in positive-ion FABMS. Six typical N-diisopropyloxyphorphorylamino acids all had intense [M ? 1]^? peaks, and they underwent similar fragmentation pathways. In general, the elimination of one alkene molecule followed by the loss of one molecule of alcohol occurred. They also favoured an N → O rearrangement reaction, followed by fragmentation to (RO)₂ PO₂^? and (RO) (HO)PO₂^?.     

Analysis of xanthates by negative-ion fast atom bombardment mass spectrometry

A new technique using negative-ion fast atom bombardment mass spectrometry for the analysis of xanthates and related compounds is described. Electron impact and positive-ion fast atom bombardment mass spectrometry produced no structurally related fragment ions or observable molecular ions at the expected m/z values. It was demonstrated that negative-ion fast atom bombardment ionization was the most suitable method of ionization for structure elucidation studies for the compounds described.     

Direct microanalysis by negative ion fast atom bombardment mass spectrometry

In negative ion fast atom bombardment (FAB) mass spectrometry, the use of a liquid matrix comprised of 15-crown-5—glycerol (1:10, v/v) enabled the molecular weight determination of small amounts of non-volatile acidic molecules. This ionization process could result in detection limits of less than one-fifth of those obtained using only glycerol as matrix. The function of the matrix as a proton acceptor is emphasized.