Significant Robustness Improvements of PAHs Analysis in Palm Oil Using the JetClean Self-Cleaning Ion Source in a GC/MS/MS System

Importance of the Topic

Pahs are regulated polycyclic aromatic compounds with carcinogenic potential that often contaminate food fat matrices such as palm oil At low allowed limits high analytical rigor is required to ensure consumer safety

Study Objectives and Overview

This work evaluated the robustness improvements brought by a self cleaning ion source in a GC MS MS platform for PAH determination in palm oil over an extended operation period A five day test sequence including heavy matrix challenges was designed to assess precision accuracy and downtime reduction

Methodology and Instrumentation

Sample preparation involved direct toluene extraction of palm oil spiked with 13C labelled internal standards No further cleanup was applied A five day sequence included daily calibration blank QC and heavy contamination tests generated by intentional Rhodamine 6 deposition

Used Instrumentation

Agilent 7000C GC MS MS based PAH Analyzer equipped with a JetClean self cleaning ion source DB EUPAH capillary column 30 m x 0 25 mm x 0 25 um pulsed splitless injection continuous hydrogen flow for source cleaning and tandem mass spectrometry with one quantifier and two qualifier transitions per analyte

Main Results and Discussion

A 10 point calibration from 0 to 100 ng mL achieved linearity with R2 values of 0 9976 on day 1 and 0 9972 on day 5 Sensitivity at 1 ng mL 1 pg on column met regulatory requirements at levels five times lower than maximum limits Precision across 12 injections yielded area RSDs below 4 % Accuracy in palm oil extracts ranged from 93 to 101 % over five days The self cleaning source eliminated the need for manual cleaning over 11 months in field deployment maintaining stable performance

Benefits and Practical Applications

• Enhanced laboratory productivity via continuous unattended operation
• Reduced downtime and maintenance frequency
• Improved compliance with EU regulations for PAHs in food matrices
• Reliable quantitation in challenging high fat samples such as infant formula

Future Trends and Opportunities

Extended application of self cleaning ion sources in other complex matrices integration with automated workflows and artificial intelligence for real time data quality monitoring Miniaturized GC MS systems and further reduction of detection limits for environmental food safety analyses are anticipated

Conclusion

The implementation of a JetClean self cleaning ion source on a GC MS MS platform significantly enhanced robustness sensitivity and precision for PAH analysis in palm oil Continuous hydrogen assisted cleaning removed manual intervention and sustained performance over months enabling compliance with stringent regulatory limits

Reference

Anderson Kim A et al Modified ion source triple quadrupole mass spectrometer gas chromatograph for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon analyses Journal of Chromatography A 1419 2015 89 98