Spark source mass precision

Qualitatively, the spark source mass spectrum is relatively simple and easy to interpret. Most instrumentation has been designed to operate with a mass resolution Al/dM of about 1500. For example, at mass M= 60 a difference of 0.04 amu can be resolved. This is sufficient for the separation of most hydrocarbons from metals of the same nominal mass and for precise mass determinations to identify most species. Each exposure, as described earlier and shown in Figure 2, covers the mass range from Be to U, with the elemental isotopic patterns clearly resolved for positive identification. 

C. W. Magee. Critical Parameters Affecting Precision and Accuracy in Spark Source Mass Spectrometry with Electrical Detection. PhD thesis, Univetsity of Virginia, University Microfilms, Ann Arbot, MI, 1973. 

Precision expressed as 95% confidence intervals Spark source mass spectrometry, internal standard method From [735]... 

The earlier stable isotope dilution mass spectrographic work was accomplished with a thermal ion mass spectrometer which had been specifically designed for isotope abundance measurements. However, Leipziger [829] demonstrated that the spark source mass spectrometer could also be used satisfactorily for this purpose. Although it did not possess the excellent precision of the thermal unit, Paulsen and coworkers [830] pointed out that it did have a number of important advantages. 

The thermal ion mass spectrometer was specifically developed for the measurement of isotope abundances and is capable of excellent precision. Although the spark source mass spectrometer used in this work lacks some of this precision, it has proved very useful in stable isotope dilution work. It has a number of advantages, including greater versatility, relatively uniform sensitivity, and better applicability to a wide range of elements. 

In 1977, Jochum et aZ.12,14 developed the multiple ion counting (MC) technique using an old spark source mass spectrometer with 20 separate channeltrons 1.8 mm wide for simultaneous electrical ion detection. The sensitivity was increased by a factor of 20 compared to SSMS with ion detection using a photoplate and the precision of the analytical results was improved. 

While our research was concerned with developing wet chemical methods, we confirmed our data with analyses from an available spark source mass spectrometer (SSMS). The SSMS operating parameters are given in Table I. The instrument used was an AEI MS-7 (I, 2) equipped with electrical detection. It was used in the peak switching mode only to provide more precise analyses. 

Taylor S.R. and Gorton M.P., 1977, Geochemical applications of spark-source mass spectrography, III. Element sensitivity, precision and accuracy. Ceochim. Cosmochim. Acta, 41, 1375-1380. 

Since the spark source mass spectrograph does not provide a consistent precise relative exposure measurement, it is necessary to treat each exposure as a separate entity. Thus the data available to establish the density versus intensity relationship (calibration curve) are restricted to density readings on individual exposures. The only independent and absolute intensity scale available is that provided by the isotopic ratios of individual elements. Varying sensitivities do not allow use of lines due to different elements, even though their concentrations might be known from other analytical techniques. 

Spark source (SSMS) and thermal emission (TEMS) mass spectrometry are used to determine ppb to ppm quantities of elements in energy sources such as coal, fuel oil, and gasoline. Toxic metals—cadmium, mercury, lead, and zinc— may be determined by SSMS with an estimated precision of 5%, and metals which ionize thermally may be determined by TEMS with an estimated precision of 1% using the isotope dilution technique. An environmental study of the trace element balance from a coal-fired steam plant was done by SSMS using isotope dilution to determine the toxic metals and a general scan technique for 15 other elements using chemically determined iron as an internal standard. In addition, isotope dilution procedures for the analysis of lead in gasoline and uranium in coal and fly ash by TEMS are presented. 

The essential aspects have been discussed in the introduction on the use of RMs and CRMs. It should be noted that inorganic CRMs, in particular pure metals, are available on the market from several reliable suppliers. They show usually purity values with associated uncertainties that are negligible compared to the uncertainty of the majority of spectrometric methods in which they serve as calibrants. It is usual to find materials of stated (not by definition certified) purity of 99.999% (five nines in analytical jargon) or better. This would mean that any impurity is below 0.001% as a mass fraction. No relative analytical method has precision performances that go down to such levels. Suppliers of ultra pure metals are numerous. NIST sells such metals as certified RMs (SRMs). The certification of the purity is discussed briefly in Chapter 5. It can be mentioned that the measurements are often based on absolute methods. The ultimate detection of impurities can be made with spark source MS. For pure metals the uncertainty linked to the calculated purity is small. Therefore, compared to the intended use and the uncertainty of classical methods applied by the analyst for the determination of elements, it is totally negligible. 

Spectroscopic methods for the deterrnination of impurities in niobium include the older arc and spark emission procedures (53) along with newer inductively coupled plasma source optical emission methods (54). Some work has been done using inductively coupled mass spectroscopy to determine impurities in niobium (55,56). X-ray fluorescence analysis, a widely used method for niobium analysis, is used for routine work by niobium concentrates producers (57,58). Paying careful attention to matrix effects, precision and accuracy of x-ray fluorescence analyses are at least equal to those of the gravimetric and ion-exchange methods. 

Nicholls, G.D., A.L. Graham, E. Williams and M. Wood, 1967, Precision and accuracy in trace element analysis of geological materials using solid source spark mass spectrography. Anal. Chem. 39, 584. 

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