High-resolution mass spectrum

Identification most often relies upon comparison of the GC or HPLC retention time together with the mass spectrum, or of the NMR spectrum with those of authentic reference compounds. Use of GC or LC retention times alone is not adequate, although for GC this may be an acceptable compromise procedure if several derivatives are available. Use of only the mass spectrum is clearly unacceptable since isomers generally provide essentially identical spectra. Naturally, compounds whose structures are unknown may be encountered this presents a much greater challenge since comparison is not then possible. Determination of the structure of such compounds must therefore rely upon determination of the molecular mass by high-resolution... 

TOP analyzers, like quadrupoles, scan the mass spectrum rapidly. Resolutions of 500 can be obtained. These analyzers are popular for high mass ion detection since they have no real upper mass Limit. 

The two predominant cleavage products occur at m/e 58, which corresponds to CH2N(CH3)2, and m/e 195, corresponding to the trimethoxybenzoyl moiety. Other characteristic masses appearing in the spectrum are m/e 330, which corresponds to the loss of CH2N(CH3)2 from the molecular ion, and m/e 317 corresponding to the loss of C HgN from the parent mass. The high resolution spectrum fully confirmed the results of the low resolution scan (5). 

The mass spectrum of pyridazine is simple and high resolution measurements have shown that the ion at m/e 52 is composed of both (73.5%) and C3H2N (26.5%) ions ... 

The C NMR spectrum of the metabolite shows 16 signals instead of 8 as expected from the elemental composition determined by high-resolution mass spectrometry. Moreover, aromaticity of the 2,6-xylenol is obviously lost after metabolism because two ketonic carbonyl carbon atoms (5c = 203.1 and 214.4) and four instead of twelve carbon signals are observed in the shift range of trigonal carbon nuclei (5c = 133.1, 135.4, 135.6 and 139.4) in the C NMR spectra. To conclude, metabolism involves oxidation of the benzenoid ring. 

In quadrupole-based SIMS instruments, mass separation is achieved by passing the secondary ions down a path surrounded by four rods excited with various AC and DC voltages. Different sets of AC and DC conditions are used to direct the flight path of the selected secondary ions into the detector. The primary advantage of this kind of spectrometer is the high speed at which they can switch from peak to peak and their ability to perform analysis of dielectric thin films and bulk insulators. The ability of the quadrupole to switch rapidly between mass peaks enables acquisition of depth profiles with more data points per depth, which improves depth resolution. Additionally, most quadrupole-based SIMS instruments are equipped with enhanced vacuum systems, reducing the detrimental contribution of residual atmospheric species to the mass spectrum. 

Unlike the stable molecule N2O, the sulfur analogue N2S decomposes above 160 K. In the vapour phase N2S has been detected by high-resolution mass spectrometry. The IR spectrum is dominated by a very strong band at 2040 cm [v(NN)]. The first ionization potential has been determined by photoelectron spectroscopy to be 10.6 eV. " These data indicate that N2S resembles diazomethane, CH2N2, rather than N2O. It decomposes to give N2 and diatomic sulfur, S2, and, hence, elemental sulfur, rather than monoatomic sulfur. Ab initio molecular orbital calculations of bond lengths and bond energies for linear N2S indicate that the resonance structure N =N -S is dominant. 

Structure of Oxy-F Compound F is extremely unstable and is difficult to obtain at a level of purity suitable for NMR studies. However, an oxidation product, Oxy-F, formed when F is left standing at — 20° C, is considerably more stable than F and can be purified to a sufficiently high level of purity. Oxy-F is nonfluorescent and shows absorption maxima at 237 nm and 275 nm (shoulder). The high-resolution FAB mass spectrum indicated the molecular formula of Oxy-F to be C33H3809N4Na2 [m/z 703.2363 (M + Na)+ and 681.2483 (M + H)"1"]. The H and 13C NMR data allowed the assignment of structure 7 to oxy-F (Fig. 3.2.6 Nakamura et al., 1988). 

The kinetics study [38] utilized a Fourier transform-ion cyclotron resonance (FT-ICR) mass spectrometer to measure the pathway branching ratios. The ability to eject selected masses and the extremely high mass resolution of this technique ensured that the observed CD3CH2 was in fact a primary product of the reaction. Temporal profiles from this reaction are shown in Fig. 1. Noticeably absent from the mass spectrum are the cations C2D2H3 and... 

Low resolution MS yields specificity comparable to that of high resolution MS, if a relatively pure sample is delivered to the ion source. Either high resolution GC or additional sample purification is required. To obtain sufficient specificity, it is necessary to demonstrate that the intensities of the major peaks in the mass spectrum are in the correct proportions. Usually 10 to 50 ng of sample is required to establish identity unambiguously. Use of preparative GC for purification of nitrosamines detected by the TEA ( ) is readily adaptable to any nitrosamine present in a complex mixture and requires a minimum of analytical method development when new types of samples are examined. 

Figure 7a demonstrates that FTMS can simultaneously detect ions over a broad mass range. This is the actual high resolution mass spectrum, not a stick plot. This spectrum was obtained when a mixture of CO,, C H., and acetone was leaked into the chamber and ionized by the electron beam. The total sample pressure was... 

C0H4, and acetone, (b) High resolution FTM mass spectrum of the mass 28 region showing CO, N , and C2H4. Reproduced with permission from Ref. 18. Copyright 1985, North-Holland Physics. 

Principles and Characteristics Mass spectrometry can provide the accurate mass determination in a direct measurement mode. For a properly calibrated mass spectrometer the mass accuracy should be expected to be good to at least 0.1 Da. Accurate mass measurements can be made at any resolution (resolution matters only when separating masses). For polymer/additive deformulation the nominal molecular weight of an analyte, as determined with an accuracy of 0.1 Da from the mass spectrum, is generally insufficient to characterise the sample, in view of the small mass differences in commercial additives. With the thousands of additives, it is obvious that the same nominal mass often corresponds to quite a number of possible additive types, e.g. NPG dibenzoate, Tinuvin 312, Uvistat 247, Flexricin P-1, isobutylpalmitate and fumaric acid for m = 312 Da see also Table 6.7 for m = 268 Da. Accurate mass measurements are most often made in El mode, since the sensitivity is high, and reference mass peaks are readily available (using various fluorinated reference materials). Accurate mass measurements can also be made in Cl... 

Applications MALDI-ToFMS is at its best as a rapid screening technique for quick identification of known additives. However, this screening is rendered slightly more complicated by the fact that MALDI-ToFMS spectra of pure additives and of additives in the presence of excess macromolecules are not always identical (matrix effect) [55]. For unknown additives, the relation MALDI-ToFMS spectrum-chemical structure is not easily established, and the use of FD or MALDI-MS/MS is then needed. As MALDI-MS shows a sensitivity difference for the various additives, it cannot easily quantify them unless the analytes are very similar. For differentiation of additives with the same mass number (e.g. Tinuvin 315 and Cyasorb UV3638 with m/z = 368) high resolution is required, as provided by delayed extraction MALDI-ToFMS. 

Meyer-Dulheuer [55] has analysed the pure additives (phenolic antioxidants, benzotriazole UV stabilisers and HALS compounds) of Table 9.8 in THF solutions by means of MALDI-ToFMS. As it turns out, polar molecules in the mass range of below 800 Da, which have a high absorption coefficient at the laser wavelength used, can often be measured without any matrix [55,56]. In this case, there is no matrix-assisted laser desorption and ionisation (MALDI) process any more. It is a simple laser desorption/ionisation (LDI) process. The advantage of this method is a matrix-free mass spectrum with the same mass resolution as in the MALDI case,... 

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