INTERFACING CHROMATOGRAPHY AND MASS-SPECTROMETRY

The problems of interfacing chromatography with a detection system depend upon the properties of the chromatographic phase, the properties of the sample, and the quantity flow rate of the mobile phase. In a combined chromatography/mass spectrometry (MS) system, the mobile phase carries sample through the chromatographic column at a flow rate, pressure, and temperature dictated by the chemical nature of the sample. This flow must be transferred to a mass spectrometer constrained by practical design to operate under a flow rate, pressure, and temperature that may differ considerably from those of the chromatograph. It is the function of the interface to effect an efficient transfer of sample from the chromatograph to the mass spectrometer while maintaining the different operating conditions required within the two systems.