Center for Microfluidics and Medical Diagnostics, Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Notre Dame, Indiana 46556, United States.
Anal Chem. 2011 May 1;83(9):3260-6. doi: 10.1021/ac200380q. Epub 2011 Apr 7.
A surface acoustic wave-based sample delivery and ionization method that requires minimal to no sample pretreatment and that can operate under ambient conditions is described. This miniaturized technology enables real-time, rapid, and high-throughput analysis of trace compounds in complex mixtures, especially high ionic strength and viscous samples that can be challenging for conventional ionization techniques such as electrospray ionization. This technique takes advantage of high order surface acoustic wave (SAW) vibrations that both manipulate small volumes of liquid mixtures containing trace analyte compounds and seamlessly transfers analytes from the liquid sample into gas phase ions for mass spectrometry (MS) analysis. Drugs in human whole blood and plasma and heavy metals in tap water have been successfully detected at nanomolar concentrations by coupling a SAW atomization and ionization device with an inexpensive, paper-based sample delivery system and mass spectrometer. The miniaturized SAW ionization unit requires only a modest operating power of 3 to 4 W and, therefore, provides a viable and efficient ionization platform for the real-time analysis of a wide range of compounds.
本文描述了一种基于表面声波的样品输送和离子化方法，该方法仅需极少甚至无需样品预处理，并且可以在环境条件下运行。这种小型化技术能够实时、快速、高通量地分析复杂混合物中的痕量化合物，尤其是对于传统的离子化技术（如电喷雾离子化）具有挑战性的高离子强度和粘性样品。该技术利用高阶表面声波（SAW）振动，既能操纵含有痕量分析物化合物的小体积液体混合物，又能将分析物无缝地从液体样品转移到气相离子中，用于质谱（MS）分析。通过将 SAW 雾化和离子化装置与廉价的基于纸张的样品输送系统和质谱仪相结合，已经成功地在纳摩尔浓度下检测到了人全血和血浆中的药物以及自来水中的重金属。这种小型化的 SAW 离子化单元仅需要 3 到 4 W 的适度工作功率，因此为实时分析各种化合物提供了一种可行且高效的离子化平台。
