Grid nebulizers

The sample solutions are made into aerosols by a nebulizer system and transported into the plasma with a carrier gas. Pneumatic, ultrasonic, or grid nebulizers are used for nebulizing the sample. Water or organic solvents can be removed from the aerosol by a desolvation unit if the plasma source cannot take large quantities without interference. 

Figure 111 Hildebrand grid nebulizer (Unicam Analytical Systems Ltd.)...

The interface between the chromatograph and ICP-MS consisted of a 40 cm length of 0.25 mm i.d. Teflon tubing connecting the end of the HPLC column to a Hildebrand grid nebulizer. A Scott-type double pass spray chamber was cooled to -8° C in order to minimize the amount of solvent vapor reaching the plasma. 

The spray approach requires the smallest amount of both specimen and stain. While this can be done with a pharmaceutical nebulizer, it is accomplished most easily by using a modified airbrush, such as that described by Tyler and Brandton (103). This device uses a plastic microliter pipet tip to hold the stain specimen mixture and allows the areosol dispersion of as little as 5 il-10 pi of the mixture. The target in this case is a coated grid. Since the droplets of stain/specimen jure so small (5 pl-20 pm in diameter), they dry-down rapidy, so there is less time for any drying defects to occur. When using either the nebulizer or airbrush approach,... 

Fig. 9. Electron micrograph (courtesy of Dr. R. C. Williams) of ribonucleopro-tein particles from pea seedlings, prepared according to Raacke JS6S). The particles, suspended in distilled water, were sprayed from a Vaponeferin nebulizer onto collo-dium-covered grids and shadowed with uranium at an angle of 3 1 the polystyrene reference particles are 2G0 m/i in diameter. Magnification X65,C00.

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