Detection of SVOCs by Agilent 7010D GC/MS/MS Using Hydrogen Carrier GasNew Organic Monitoring Techniques
Poster Presentation
Prepared by A. Cuthbertson1, E. O'Neill2, A. Willey2, A. Andrianova2
1 - Agilent Technologies, 2850 Centerville Rd, Wilmington, DE, 19805, United States
2 - Agilent Technologies, 2850 Centerville Rd, Wilmington, DE, 19808, United States
Contact Information: [email protected]; 302-332-6928
ABSTRACT
Semi-volatile organic compounds (SVOCs) occur throughout the environment and can influence atmospheric chemical processes. Traditionally, these compounds are analyzed by gas chromatography with a single quadrupole detector. With a triple quadrupole mass spectrometer (GC/TQ) as a detector, it’s possible to acquire in dynamic MRM (dMRM) mode which minimizes interference from co-eluting compounds and allows lower detection levels. This work describes a new method with hydrogen carrier gas and a GC/TQ to detect SVOCs at low ppb levels, comparable to analyses employing helium carrier gas.
Standard mixtures containing SVOCs were prepared at 0.1-1000 ppb, 0.5-1000 ppb, or 1-1000 ppb in DCM. A 20 m x 180 µm x 0.18 µm DB-5MS UI column was used with a constant flow rate of 0.9 mL/min of hydrogen. Standards were injected into a multimode inlet (MMI) in cold pulsed splitless mode with a 2 mm dimpled liner. One comprehensive acquisition method was developed consisting of 531 MRMs for many SVOCs, also including organochlorine pesticides (OCPs), organophosphorous pesticides (OPPs), toxaphene, and technical chlordane. Of the 20 OCPs analyzed, 12 were detected as low as 0.1 ppb with a 1 µL injection, which is impressive given the sensitivity loss associated with running hydrogen carrier gas. Of the 152 analytes included in this work, all calibrated with at least 6 consecutive points. Average of Response Factors (Avg RF) was the preferred curve fit, and 70 compounds had an Avg. RF RSD of less than 20%. Of the remaining compounds, 12 had a linear fit and 70 were quadratic, all with R2 ≥0.99.
