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Ancient Roman builders designed maritime concrete harbor structures to remain intact in the aggressive seawater environment for very long periods of time.

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Cement is one of the most important materials in the construction industry. Traditionally, WDXRF spectrometers used in cement plants have been large, floor-standing models with substantial installation requirements and ownership expenses. This application note demonstrates the capabilities of the Rigaku Supermini - a new low-cost, benchtop wavelength dispersive X-ray fluorescence (WDXRF) spectrometer - for the rapid quantitative elemental analysis of cement raw meal.

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Here, we offer highlights of the 2022 Review of Spectroscopic Instrumentation, which appeared in our May issue.

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A method to measure ultrafine silica nanoparticles using ICP-MS/MS to control the elemental and polyatomic ion backgrounds is described here.

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Acquisition and interpretation of a spectra database for ICP-AES analysis are described. The aim is the selection of nanometer-wide spectral windows containing several elements and several lines per element, so as to perform multiline analysis. An automatic line assignment procedure has been used. Information such as wavelength, sensitivity, line width, limit of detection, and level of detector saturation are stored. Filtering procedures are used for line selection, taking into account concentrations and possible spectral interferences.

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The new Savillex PFA Cyclonic Spray Chamber is the first inert chamber with the traditional shape of a glass cyclonic, and is also the first translucent inert chamber.

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SERDS analysis can be easily and successfully carried out using two high-power laser diodes with a fixed-wavelength separation in the presence of high fluorescence.

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The analysis of seals, mostly via the ink types, can provide evidence to authenticate the related documents and can play a key role in legal cases. In the present study, a method to discriminate red seal inks using Raman microscopy and Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy was developed.

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Method development for ICP-MS/MS should not be difficult. The six steps here will guide you to success.

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This application note demonstrates the effectiveness of Agilent compact and portable FTIR systems for detecting counterfeit pharmaceuticals with three examples: ethambutol hydrochloride, cephuroxime axetil, and atorvastatin calcium.

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For a number of elements, spectroscopic interferences can have a significant impact on the ability to achieve low detection limits in ICP-MS. We investigate the mechanisms in multi-quadrupole ICP-MS that are designed to remove these interferences.

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SERDS analysis can be easily and successfully carried out using two high-power laser diodes with a fixed-wavelength separation in the presence of high fluorescence.

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This article investigates the use of gas chromatography–time-of-flight mass spectrometry (GC–TOF MS) to fragrance-profile three essential oils (ginger, wintergreen and rosemary). As well as considering the compositional differences between the oils, we will examine the use of peak deconvolution to identify closely-eluting compounds, and explore the use of soft electron ionization, assisted by comparison of ion ratios, to discriminate between isomeric monoterpenes that are difficult to identify at conventional 70 eV ionization energies due to their very similar mass spectra.

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SERS of bacterial cells can be a useful technique for clinical diagnostics, as illustrated by the analysis of a human urine sample spiked with urinary tract infection bacteria.

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This tutorial demonstrates that Raman is well-suited to tackle two challenges faced by industry: complex mixtures and isomers.

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The quality and safety of ready-to-eat packaged foods-such as salads-is very difficult for consumers and suppliers to judge, and improving this situation is the focus of a Europe-wide research project. Part of the project is devoted to the development of better methods to detect and analyze the volatile organic compounds released from relevant food types, in an effort to identify biomarkers for quality and microbial contamination. This article examines one important food (melon) and shows how a method based on thermal desorption (TD) with gas chromatography-time-of-flight-mass spectrometry (GC–TOF-MS) can elucidate how key volatiles vary with time of storage and with the size of the melon pieces. The article highlights how such analytical information will be of value in efforts to improve the quality and safety of ready-to-eat foods.

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A critical review of the main developments in instrument technology, calibration, and sample preparation that have made it possible to determine low sulfur concentrations in fuels followed by a discussion of strategies to minimize spectral interferences related to sulfur determination by ICP-MS, such as collision–reaction cells, high-resolution mass analyzers, and the interference standard method.

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SERDS analysis can be easily and successfully carried out using two high-power laser diodes with a fixed-wavelength separation in the presence of high fluorescence.

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The purpose of this study was the development of various analytical MS methods to investigate the chemical composition of e-liquids used in electronic cigarettes and characterize their quality. Low-quality nicotine (the main active compound), glycerol, propylene glycol (solvents), or flavors could greatly increase the toxicity. The search of alkaloid contaminants of nicotine was performed by LC–MS-MS after a deep study of fragmentation pathways by high resolution ESI-MS. A fully validated method for quantitation of organic polar impurities such as cotinine, anabasine, myosmine, nornicotine, and N-nitroso-nornicotine and nicotine itself was developed using MS coupled to UHPLC. To evaluate organic volatile toxicants, headspace from e-cigarette refill liquids was sampled by SPME to perform GC–MS analysis. Finally, heavy metal residues as inorganic toxicants were determined by ICP-MS after simple dilution. A number of cases of contamination by metals (mainly arsenic) was detected.

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Novel ionization processes provide gas-phase ions of a wide variety of materials using MS. These simple and sensitive methods operate from solution or a solid matrix. Both manual and automated platforms are described that allow rapid switching between the ionization methods of MAI, SAI, vSAI, and conventional ESI.

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A method is presented using IR and Raman microscopy to discriminate carbonate-containing and carbonate-free PVC that helps forensic scientists trace suspects, avoid wrong certificates of authenticity, and characterize and analyze carbonate components.

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Amptek, Inc.

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This eBook provides a deeper dive into the benefits of applying a ‘Total Workflow’ approach to sample prep for elemental analysis and the tools and methods that can be used to achieve those benefits.

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Nebulizer selection is a critical but often overlooked aspect of inductively coupled plasma–optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES) analyses. There are many different nebulizers available for ICP-OES, and choosing the optimal one can be confusing and difficult. To achieve peak performance from your ICP, it is essential to choose the proper nebulizer based on your sample types in addition to any necessary accessories to maintain long-term performance. In this study, we compare the performance of Glass Expansion’s most popular concentric nebulizer designs for ICP-OES applications as well as a parallel-path nebulizer from another vendor, providing a complete selection guide based on performance and design.

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The structural complexity of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) challenges the capabilities of even the most advanced chromatography and mass spectrometry techniques. This study examines the use of micro-pillar array columns in combination with mass spectrometry for peptide mapping of both mAbs and antibody–drug conjugates (ADCs).

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Current USP Method 231 "Heavy Metals" was introduced in 1905 for determining heavy metal impurities in pharmaceutical drug products. The procedures of the method have several limitations, which produce results that are nondiscriminatory, difficult to reproduce, and qualitative, or at best, semi-quantitative.

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Whether the goal is food safety, ensuring quality, or establishing provenance, measuring the trace element content of foods and beverages that we all consume is of paramount importance. While some elements are essential for our well being at low concentrations, others like lead and chromium are highly toxic and more still are being linked to viral, neurological, and other diseases. Food scares related to contamination or poor quality not only constitute a health risk, they also undermine consumer confidence. This can lead to lost earnings through reduced sales and loss of credibility through adverse publicity.