Marja-Liisa Riekkola at the University of Helsinki and coworkers have used a new two-dimensional gas chromatography-time-of-flight mass spectrometry (GCxGC-TOF-MS) method to screen and provide a semi-quantitative analysis of organic compounds in aerosol particles.
Analytes in 30 nm, 50 nm and total suspended particles, collected at 3 different timepoints, were identified by comparison to reference libraries and classified by main functional group or element. The classifications allowed the authors to successfully clarify particle composition and determine the influence of particle size on the composition of the different sized particles. They found that the number of compounds increased with increasing particle size, whereas the normalized response factor decreased, aldehydes being the exception.
Comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography, a valuable technique for screening and semiquantitation of different chemical compounds in ultrafine 30 nm and 50 nm aerosol particles
José Ruiz-Jiménez, Jevgeni Parshintsev, Totti Laitinen, Kari Hartonen, Marja-Liisa Riekkola, Tuukka Petäjä and Markku Kulmala
DOI: 10.1039/C1EM10486A
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