Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS)
Agilent 7700x ICP-MS
Instrument: Agilent 7700x ICP-MS
How it works
- An inductively coupled plasma (ICP) is used to atomise and ionise the sample.
- A mass spectrometer is used to separate and detect ions by their mass-to-charge (M/Z) ratio.
The detector can achieve linear performance from parts per trillion or lower, up to hundreds of parts per million in solution. The excellent sensitivity of the instrument and the very efficient collision / reaction cell interface means that analysis of 'difficult' elements such as V, Cr, As can be particularly good.
Applications
This technique is routinely used to analyse trace and ultra-trace levels of most metals and some non-metals in:
- digests of rocks, minerals and organic materials
- digests of man-made materials
- waters
Elements routinely determined by ICP-MS:
Li, Be, Al, Sc, Ti, V, Cr, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Ga, As, Rb, Y, Zr, Nb, Mo, platinum group elements, Cd, Sn, Sb, Cs, Ba, rare earth elements, Hf, Ta, W, Re, Tl, Pb, Th, U
Examples:
- complete bulk geochemistry of rocks for geological 10.1016/j.lithos.2012.03.001
10.2113/gsecongeo.105.1.119
and anthropological 10.1016/j.jhevol.2011.02.004 studies - chemical analysis of meteorites and lunar rocks
10.1111/j.1945-5100.2010.01165.x - high-precision determination of ultra-trace levels of rare earth elements in a wide range of rocks, minerals and natural waters
- determination of rare earth and other trace elements in peat samples as tracers of climate change
10.1016/j.gca.2011.08.025 including method development 10.1016/j.talanta.2012.01.052 - biomonitoring using rare earth and other trace elements in lichens
- detection of ultra-trace levels of metals using diffusive gradients in thin films (DGT)
- quantification of titanium, zinc, copper, silver and Platinum Group Elements in nanoparticle research
10.1021/es301253s - study of elemental tracers in biological samples - for example, trace metals in plants and Gd, Pt, Mn, Zn in cell lysates
10.1007/s11307-010-0400-3 - determination of metal content of proteins and other biologically important molecules
Contact details
For further information or to discuss your analytical requirements contact:
Dr Stanislav Strekopytov
Tel: +44 (0)20 7942 5498
Fax: +44 (0)20 7942 5811
Email