Proton transfer reaction mass spectrometry (PTR-MS) and selected ion flow tube mass spectrometry (SIFT-MS) are decades-old field-deployable chemical ionization technologies with portable features.
They are primarily utilized to determine numerous gases with high time resolution, taking several measurements every second at low amount fractions of pmol mol-1, equal to a single drop of water in an Olympic-sized swimming pool.
These approaches can be utilized with various reagent ions that ionize the compounds under investigation, facilitating their exposure. Among the major reagent ions utilized is the hydronium ion (H3O+), which ionizes all compounds with proton affinities higher than water. This means it avoids interference from air’s major components—argon, carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and oxygen—preventing any requirement for sample pretreatment.
The PTR-MS and SIFT-MS approaches utilize H3O+ to identify compounds as protonated molecular ions, which are maintained thanks to limited fragmentation from the minimal excess energy of the proton transfer reaction.
This helps identify compounds in complex mixtures without necessitating extra approaches like traditional chromatographic separation. The PTR-MS and SIFT-MS approaches are particularly helpful in time-sensitive environments. They can provide real-time measurements and have been used in numerous industries and research activities since their debut in the mid-1990s.
These include air quality monitoring, breath analysis, biological research, illegal substance detection, environmental research, food and flavor science, and safety and security.
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