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The current Trends and Future Revolution in Mass Spectrometer

Mass Spectrometer (MS) basically works to separate components on basis of their mass by
charge ratio by various physical means for instance dispersion in a magnetic field, time of flight
preceded by acceleration of particles in an area with fixed potential. The main steps that
particles undergo in MS are: Ionisation, Acceleration, Deflection and Detection.

Discovery of MS began accidently with the advent and during exploration of canal rays which
when passed through ionised neon gave two patches of parabolic light path on photographic
plate. This was studied further by a student of JJ Thompson named Francis Alton who made a
fully functional mass spectrometer and he helped in defining the masses of isotopes of
Chlorine, Bromine, Krypton etc. This discovery brought him accolades and he became a
member of the Royal Society in 1921 and won a Nobel Prize for the same. Arthur Jeffery
Dempster worked on mass spectrometer and made the basic design of mass spectrometer which
is used even today which led to discovery of Uranium isotope whose ability of massive energy
fission was utilised in making of atom bomb and thus laying the foundation of the Manhattan
Project. Later in 1950s, Mass spectrometer began to be used in conjunction with Gas
Chromatography.

Developments in MS in recent years is noted in several review papers, every year there are
more than 40 papers on MS and its development and some them are quite significant and
revolutionising, also all developments have a diverse design and different researchers in
different fields see MS as a helpful instrument.

Some of the advancements that have come up in recent years have been listed here.

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ION SOURCE: MULTI MODE

Ion sources can be switched on the click of a button in advanced mass spectrometers between
various modes like Electron Spray Ionisation (ESI), Matrix Assisted Laser Desorption
Ionization (MALDI), Atmospheric Pressure Chemical Ionisation (APCI) and multi-mode.

Latest advancement is multimode where two ionisations methods work together

simultaneously to provide a better and completely ionised sample to fulfil the flaws of each
other, ESI and APCI work in conjunction and cause effective ionisation. The sample gets
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converted into fine mist by orthogonal nebuliser( orthogonal shape is specifically given to
nebuliser because it distributes the particles equally and gives equals shape and size to all the
particles) and is charged by and electrode and the ionised sample along with the remnant
unionised analyte sample passed through the reverse electrode which prevents the pull back of
particles that passed through ESI back again and so that they can drift onto a APCI chamber
equipped with a corona discharge rod in the middle that evaporates( evaporation is carried out
by infra-red so that optimal sample conditions of APCI be reached which means the sample is
completely converted to vapour form) all the solvent molecules and converts them into ions by
making them come in contact with the charged corona. (Fischer & Perkins, 2005)

An overview diagram of the multimode source

(Image courtesy: http://www.agilent.com/cs/library/technicaloverviews/public/5989-

2935EN.pdf)

ORTHOGONAL NEBULISER ORIENTATION IN ELECTROSPRAY FOR

QUADROPOLE AND ION TRAP MASS SPECTROMETER

The requirement of sample in ESI and APCI is a desolvated sample. If the sample is desolvated
it can contribute to a large amount of background noise especially in case of complex samples.
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Proper desolvation also decreases the chances of sampling orifice and even the mass analyser.
So, high precision and reproducible result can produced using the off type which means
orthogonal nebuliser. Precision that is comparable to triple quadrupole. This is needed because
the performance of mass spectrometer has be really flawless for quantitative analysis.
(Voyksner, 2001)

HPLC CHIP-MS

Works on the principle of Nano flow LCMS that combines micro fluids with easy to use plug
and play interface to get good results. HPLC Chip integrates enrichment and integrated
columns, micro valve connections and multicoated electrospray tip on a multi-layered
polyamide film. HPLC Chip MS small that leads to minimum peak distortions and blank noise
or ghost peaks and performs several functions in a compact manner starting from sample
loading to ionisation of eluents. The HPLC Chip MS has following main components: sample
enrichment column, separation column with intricate connections and electrospray tip that is
orthogonal for compound ionisation. This eliminates 50% of the extra fitting thus making the
instrument smaller and easy to use with less leaks, minimum dead volume, high sensitivity,
highly reproducible results and increased precision thus making it more reliable.

FUTURE TECHNOLOGICIAL EXPECTATIONS

The need for miniaturisation and cost effective throughput and with Capillary Electrophoresis
with MS were discussed in a meeting in UK where several researchers met to discuss some of
the following characteristics in heading towards miniaturisation technology. Columns and and
transfer of sample could pose as a hurdle; also new packing material for Capillary
Electrophoresis could help in this. Nanospary ionisation could be another landmark and also
the need of the hour for miniaturisation project. Also, the combination of CEC-MS is untested
but promises to revolutionise the MS in miniature models for better. (GlaxoWellcome &
Stevenage) (Kistemaker & (Eds.), 1992)
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References
Fischer, S. M., & Perkins, P. D. (2005, April 12). Simultaneous Electrospray and
Atmospheric Pressure Chemical Ionisation Multimode: The science behind Aglilent
Multimode Ion Source. pp. 1-5. Retrieved from
http://www.agilent.com/cs/library/technicaloverviews/public/5989-2935EN.pdf

Fjeldsted, J. (2007, December 13). Recent Advances in Mass Spectrometery. pp. 3-33.
Retrieved from
https://www.agilent.com/cs/library/eseminars/Public/Recent_Advances_LCMS_13DE
C2007.pdf

GlaxoWellcome, & Stevenage. (n.d.). British Mass Spectrometry Society— The

Miniaturisation Revolution Meeting. Current and future trends in miniaturised sample
handling, separation and detection technologies. p. 1.

Kistemaker, P., & (Eds.), N. N. (1992). Advances in Mass Spectrometry (Vol. 118 and 119).
Amsterdam: ELSEVIER SCIENCE PUBLISHERS B.V. Retrieved from http://dlx.b-
ok.org/genesis/1111000/9bab9f752b3abb7191537eec34a487e4/_as/[P.G._Kistemaker
_and_N.M.M._Nibbering_(Eds.)]_Adva(b-ok.org).pdf

Voyksner, D. R. (2001, March 15). Advantages of Orthogonal Nebulizer Orientation in

Electrospray for Quadropole and ion trap mass spectrometer. pp. 6-7. Retrieved from
www.agilent.com/cs/library/technicaloverviews/public/5988-1949EN.pdf