Abstract
In single particle inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (spICP-MS), the transport efficiency is fundamental for the correct determination of both particle number concentration and size. In the present study, transport efficiency was systematically determined on three different days with six carefully characterised gold nanoparticle (AuNP) suspensions and in seven European and US expert laboratories using different ICP-MS instruments and spICP-MS software. Both particle size—(TES)—and particle frequency—(TEF)—methods were applied. The resulting transport efficiencies did not deviate much under ideal conditions. The TEF method however systematically resulted in lower transport efficiencies. The extent of this difference (0–300% rel. difference) depended largely on the choice and storage conditions of the nanoparticle suspensions used for the determination. The TES method is recommended when the principal measurement objective is particle size. If the main aim of the measurement is the determination of the particle number concentration, the TEF approach could be preferred as it might better account for particle losses in the sample introduction system.
Highlights
Considering that the transport efficiency is among the first parameters determined on a day of spICP-MS measurements, results obtained by Dynamic Light Scattering (DLS)
The concentrations required for DLS measurements were several orders of magnitudes higher than those typically required for spICP-MS analysis
Since this might have an effect on the interactions between the particles [27,28,29] and eventually on the stability of the suspension, it was decided to assess the stability of the particle suspensions at concentrations typically used for spICP-MS analysis
Summary
In single particle inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (spICP-MS), the transport efficiency is fundamental for the correct determination of both particle number concentration and size. Transport efficiency was systematically determined on three different days with six carefully characterised gold nanoparticle (AuNP) suspensions and in seven European and US expert laboratories using different ICP-MS instruments and spICP-MS software. Due to its high sensitivity, elemental specificity and capability to simultaneously measure particle number concentration and size, single particle inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (spICP-MS) has become increasingly popular for metal/metal-oxide (nano)particle analysis in recent years [1,2]. The two most common and reliable methods, described in the ISO Technical Specification ISO/TS
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