Correcting nonlinearity and mass-bias in measurements by ICP quadrupole mass spectrometry

April 12, 2019

Argonne scientists have demonstrated a technique that can improve the relative standard deviation in the measurement of inorganic isotopes by ICP-QMS by an order of magnitude or more.

Analytical Chemist Yifen Tsai prepares a sample for analysis on the high-resolution ICP-Mass Spectrometer. — Analytical Chemist Yifen Tsai prepares to analyze samples by ICP-MS. (Image by Argonne National Laboratory.)

A team of Argonne scientists from the CFCT Division’s Analytical Chemistry Laboratory (ACL) and the SSS Division have just published a paper in Spectrochimica Acta B that describes a unique, high-precision analytical method for inorganic analysis via inductively coupled plasma quadrupole mass spectrometry (ICP-QMS).

Scientific Achievement

A technique was demonstrated that can improve the relative standard deviation in the measurement of inorganic isotopes by ICP-QMS by an order of magnitude or more, to better than 0.1%.

Significance and Impact

The precision and accuracy of this method is competitive with results from much more expensive and elaborate magnetic sector instruments, and represents a substantial improvement in the state of the art for the type of ICP-QMS measurements.

Research Details

The method developed uses a non-linearity model based on the conventional dead time function and makes subsequent weighted mass-bias corrections to normalize isotope ratio data to pertinent isotopic reference materials.
The method improves the short-term and long-term precision as well as the accuracy of ICP-QMS measurements.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sab.2019.01.003