Achieving the Pesticide MRLs with GC/MS/MS Using Hydrogen Carrier Gas

Recurring helium shortages and increased prices boost the demand for performing GC/MS analysis with alternative carrier gasses. While helium is the best carrier gas for GC/MS, hydrogen is the second-best alternative. However, unlike helium, hydrogen is not an inert gas. Hence, it can cause peak tailing, distorted ion ratios in the mass spectrum, poor library matching, and sensitivity loss.

Pesticides analysis can be challenging even with helium carrier gas given their diverse and labile nature. This presentation discusses the key strategies for analyzing pesticides with hydrogen carrier gas while delivering high-quality uncompromised results. To achieve the required detection limits with hydrogen carrier gas, the injection conditions were optimized. Further, the EI source optimized for use with hydrogen carrier gas allowed for preventing undesirable in-source reactions. Finally, method translation, and retention time locking techniques allowed the use of the MRM transitions and retention times from the database created with helium carrier gas.

Key Learning Objectives:

• Optimization of GC conditions essential when using hydrogen carrier gas
• Appropriate MS hardware selection, including the EI source optimized for use with hydrogen carrier gas
• Method translation technique for maintaining the same retention times as the original method with helium carrier gas or to scale the analysis speed with accurate retention time prediction

Who Should Attend:

• Laboratory Managers
• Chromatographers
• Product Developers

Presenter: Anastasia Andrianova (GC/MS Applications Scientist, Agilent Technologies)

Presenter: Melissa O'Meara (Forensic Science Consultant, C&EN Media Group)