LC/MS system

The combined LC/MS system provides more information than is obvious from the simple sum of the two separate instruments. 

The main advantages of the ms/ms systems are related to the sensitivity and selectivity they provide. Two mass analyzers in tandem significantly enhance selectivity. Thus samples in very complex matrices can be characterized quickly with Htde or no sample clean-up. Direct introduction of samples such as coca leaves or urine into an ms or even a gc/lc/ms system requires a clean-up step that is not needed in tandem mass spectrometry (28,29). Adding the sensitivity of the electron multiplier to this type of selectivity makes ms/ms a powerhil analytical tool, indeed. It should be noted that introduction of very complex materials increases the frequency of ion source cleaning compared to single-stage instmments where sample clean-up is done first. 

LC-MS with on-line SPE using a RAM pre-column with an internal ODS phase was described by van der Hoeven et al. (95) for the analysis of cortisol and prednisolone in plasma, and arachidonic acid in urine. The samples were injected directly and the only off-line pretreatment required was centrifugation. By using the on-line SPE-LC-MS system, cortisol and related compounds could be totally recovered and quantified in 100 p.1 plasma within 5 min with a typical detection of 2 ng/ml (Figure 11.6(b)). The RAM-type of sorbents, in which the outer surface of the particles is covered with aj-acid glycoprotein, also appear to be useful for direct SPE of... 

Figure 4.10 Schematic of a nanoflow LC-MS system. From applications literature published by Micromass UK Ltd, Manchester, UK, and reproduced with permission.

Figure 5.38 LC-electrospray mass spectrum of warfarin obtained from an LC-MS system which allows eluate from four HPLC columns to be analysed simultaneously. From de Biasi, V., Haskins, N., Organ, A., Bateman, R., Giles, K. and Jarvis, S., Rapid Commun. Mass Spectrom., 13, 1165-1168, Copyright 1999. John Wiley Sons Limited. Reproduced with permission.

LC/MS systems. Agilent 1100 Series HPLC system connected to a Thermoquest-Finnigan LCQ ion-trap mass spectrometer using an ESI interface at atmospheric pressure. 

LC-MS is now a nature technology and operation of an LC-MS system is no longer the realm of an MS specialist. The proper choice of the LC-MS mode to be used in a specific situation depends on analyte class, sample type and problem (detection, confirmation, identification). On-line LC-MS is used more for specialised applications than for general polymer or rubber compound analysis. This derives from the fact that LC-MS method development (column, solvent system, solvent programme, ionisation mode) is rather time consuming. LC-MS (in particular with API interface) enables analysis of a wide range of polar and nonvolatile compounds which cannot be analysed by GC (icf. Scheme 7.7). 

While the first two difficulties have been overcome there is no general solution available for the problem of incompatibility of mobile-phase composition. LC-MS systems are more complicated than GC-MS, as the eluted substances are mostly involatile, co-eluted with solvent, and frequently not efficiently ionised by El or Cl processes. Solutions to the problem are various, including surface ionisation (SIMS, FAB, FD, HSI,... 

Different options are available for LC-MS instruments. The vacuum system of a mass spectrometer typically will accept liquid flows in the range of 10-20 p,L min-1. For higher flow-rates it is necessary to modify the vacuum system (TSP interface), to remove the solvent before entry into the ion source (MB interface) or to split the effluent of the column (DLI interface). In the latter case only a small fraction (10-20 iLrnin ) of the total effluent is introduced into the ion source, where the mobile phase provides for chemical ionisation of the sample. The currently available commercial LC-MS systems (Table 7.48) differ widely in characteristics mass spectrometer (QMS, QQQ, QITMS, ToF-MS, B, B-QITMS, QToF-MS), mass range m/z 25000), resolution (up to 5000), mass accuracy (at best <5ppm), scan speed (up to 13000Das-1), interface (usually ESP/ISP and APCI, nanospray, PB, CF-FAB). There is no single LC-MS interface and ionisation mode that is readily suitable for all compounds... 

Earlier LC-MS systems used interfaces that either did not separate the mobile-phase molecules from the analyte molecules (DLI, TSP) or did so before ionisation (PB). The analyte molecules were then ionised in the mass spectrometer under vacuum, often by traditional El ionisation. These approaches are successful only for a very limited number of compounds. On the other hand, in atmospheric pressure ionisation, the analyte... 

Two LC-MS systems were developed, based on nearly full removal of the solvent moving-belt [520] and particle-beam [521], Mechanical transport devices... 

In reduced-flow LC-MS systems, the solvent flow into the spectrometer is reduced to a level where the pumping system can cope. Essentially, three such systems have been developed direct-liquid-introduction (DLI), flowing FAB [531] and electrospray [532]. An alternative approach to belt transport interfacing is to deliver the column eluate directly into the MS source and use Cl techniques. Methods based on this principle are called direct-liquid-injection systems, which are comprised of capillary flow restrictors, diaphragms,... 

Much LC-MS work is carried out in a qualitative or semi-quantitative mode. Development of quantitative LC-MS procedures for polymer/additive analysis is gaining attention. When accurate quantitation is necessary, it is important to understand in depth the experimental factors which influence the quantitative response of the entire LC-MS system. These factors, which include solvent composition, solvent flow-rate, and the presence of co-eluting species, exert a major influence on analyte mass transport and ionisation efficiency. Analyte responses in MS procedures can be significantly affected by the nature of the organic modifier used in the RPLC... 

Some LC/MS users adhere to isocratic separation because of the myths around gradient elution (it is complex to develop and transfer between instruments and laboratories, it is inherently slower than isocratic methods because of re-equilibration, and other reasons summarized by Carr and Schelling6). A researcher may have a very good reason to use an isocratic method, for example, for a well defined mixture containing only a few compounds. The isocratic method would certainly not be useful in an open access LC/MS system processing varying samples from injection to injection. 

Another data acquisition consideration is data file size. A high speed LC/MS data file can easily reach dimensions of 20 MB/min if maximal information is required and the detectors are set to broadest scan ranges and highest sampling rates without data reduction. LC/MS systems capable... 

Comparison of Cycle Times and Achievable Daily Sample Throughput of DAD/ToF/LC/MS System at Different Detector Settings... 

The feasibility of online SPE LC/MS/MS has been tested since the introduction of thermospray ionization. In an early research paper by Lant and Oxford (1987), a prototype online SPE LC/MS system was set up and successfully applied for the measurement of labetalol, a hypertension drug and a- and /J-adrenergic receptor, in plasma. This system was set up by coupling an advanced automated sample processor (AASP, Varian, Walton-on-Thames, UK) with a reversed-phase column, a ten-port switching valve, and an MS equipped with thermospray interface (Vestec, Houston, Texas) (Blakley et al. 1980, Blakley and Vestal 1983). 

Sometimes orthogonal offline SPE steps were used prior to online SPE LC/MS/MS. These preparation steps were used to remove interference and concentrate samples. In an application to measure urinary N7-(benzo[a]pyren-6-yl)guanine (BP-6-N7Gua), a biomarker for exposure to polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), a two-step offline SPE was first performed using Sep-Pak C8 (Waters, Milford, Massachusetts) and Strata SCX (Phenomenex, Torrance, California) cartridges to obtain high sensitivity (Chen et al. 2005). The extracts were applied to an online reversed phase SPE LC/MS system. The lower limit of detection was 2.5 fmol/mL when 10 mL of urine was used. 

Online LC-MS is a good solution for separation, identification, and quantification because it permits the confirmation of polar and nonvolatile compounds without need for derivatization.4 The use of LC-MS for biological sample detection and data analysis has grown rapidly during the past few years. Many reliable and easy to use LC-MS systems are commercially available and have been adapted for solving analytical problems by scientists in proteomics research, metabolic study, complex natural product separation and characterization, and drug discovery. 

The TSP interface was very popular and attractive to chromatogra-phers in the 1980s, as a result of its ease of operation and dependable performance. Commercial TSP LC/MS systems are equipped with an electron emitter filament to enhance the Cl process. 

---