Chromatography Forum

I am working on an application looking for ultra-trace (< 1ppb) concentrations in fish tissue of a series of PAHs and their partially saturated analogs. It appears as though I need at least an order of magnitude more sensitivity than I currently achieve with my Agilent 5973 MSD in SIM mode. I also have access to a Varian Saturn 2000 Ion Trap and was wondering if I can get greater sensitivity using MS/MS.

Simple answer is no, more complex answer is possibly. A trap is usually more sensitive in full scan than a quad, the trap can be more sensitive on a single ion , Quads are usually better on SIM (more than 1 ion). The best way to improve sensitivity is to get more on column Can you improve you sample pre treatment, a better injection method/ protocol ?

If you only look at MS detection, SIM multi ion is best on a quad. Except where you can trap a single strong ion using a trap and carry out MS/MS to confirm identification. It is also possible with quad MS/MS to use the primary quad to remove interferences and to enhance signal to noise for detection and identification.

Since you are looking at PAH's, CE's comment about more on column is a great one. Look at large volume injection to greatly increase the injection volume.

Best regards.