An easy and simple kilowatt-MPT-MS-based metal elements analysis method for rapid environmental water monitoring: An example from Poyang Lake of China

Rapid analysis of pharmaceutical and personal care products by soft microwave-based plasma ionization-linear ion trap mass spectrometer (SMPI-LTQ) in natural water

In this study, a soft microwave plasma torch (SMPT) combined with a mass spectrometer (MS) was used for the first time as an analytical method to detect and analyze various pharmaceutical and personal care products (PPCPs) in aquatic environments without the need for sample pretreatment. For this purpose, ambient SMPT was used to generate plasma for ionizing the analyte molecules. Accordingly, nine PPCPs were identified by the SMPT-MS, and their identification was verified by collision-induced dissociation (CID). The technique's performance was verified with known PPCP samples, and the limits of detection (LOD) and quantification (LOQ) obtained over a linear range of 50-1 μg/L were 1.56 to 2.81 and 2.07 to 3.62 μg/L, respectively, with the standard addition recovery rate falling between 87.14 and 115.16%. These results show that the method has excellent sensitivity and selectivity, suggesting that SMPT can rapidly and directly detect PPCPs in environmental water, making it a promising method for rapid water quality inspection.

Contemporary Research Progress on the Detection of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are a class of the most common and widespread contaminants. The accumulation of PAHs has made a certain impact on the environment and is seriously threatening human health. Numerous general analytical methods suitable for PAHs were developed. With the development of economy, the environmental problems of PAHs in modern society are more extensive and prominent, and attract more attention from environmental scientists and analysts. Deeper understanding of the properties of PAHs depends on the advent of detection methods, which can also be more conducive to promoting the protection of the environment. Till now, more sensitive, more high-speed and more high-throughput analytical tools are being invented and have played important roles in the research of PAHs. In this short review article, we focused mainly on the contemporary analytical methods about PAHs. We started with a brief review on the hazards, migration, distribution and traditional analysis methods of PAHs in recent years, including liquid chromatography, gas chromatography, surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy and so on. We also presented the applications of the modern ambient mass spectrometry, especially microwave plasma torch mass spectrometry, in the detection of PAHs, as well as the far out novel results in our lab by using microwave plasma torch (MPT) mass spectrometry; for example, some new insights about Birch reduction, regular hydrogen addition and the robustness of molecular structure. These studies have demonstrated the versatility of MPT MS as a platform in the research of PAHs.