In this study we demonstrate the potential of selective reagent ionisation-time of flight-mass spectrometry for the rapid and selective identification of a popular new psychoactive substance blend called ‘synthacaine’, a mixture that is supposed to imitate the sensory and intoxicating effects of cocaine. Reactions with H3O+ result in protonated parent molecules which can be tentatively assigned to benzocaine and methiopropamine. However, by comparing the product ion branching ratios obtained at two reduced electric field values (90 and 170 Td) for two reagent ions (H3O+ and NO+) to those of the pure chemicals, we show that identification is possible with a much higher level of confidence then when relying solely on the m/z of protonated parent molecules. A rapid and highly selective analytical identification of the constituents of a recreational drug is particularly crucial to medical personnel for the prompt medical treatment of overdoses, toxic effects or allergic reactions. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

<p>In this study we demonstrate the potential of selective reagent ionisation-time of flight-mass spectrometry for the rapid and selective identification of a popular new psychoactive substance blend called &#39;synthacaine&#39;, a mixture that is supposed to imitate the sensory and intoxicating effects of cocaine. Reactions with H3O(+) result in protonated parent molecules which can be tentatively assigned to benzocaine and methiopropamine. However, by comparing the product ion branching ratios obtained at two reduced electric field values (90 and 170 Td) for two reagent ions (H3O(+) and NO(+)) to those of the pure chemicals, we show that identification is possible with a much higher level of confidence then when relying solely on the m/z of protonated parent molecules. A rapid and highly selective analytical identification of the constituents of a recreational drug is particularly crucial to medical personnel for the prompt medical treatment of overdoses, toxic effects or allergic reactions.</p>

<p>The rapid expansion in the number and use of new psychoactive substances presents a significant analytical challenge because highly sensitive instrumentation capable of detecting a broad range of chemical compounds in real-time with a low rate of false positives is required. A Selective Reagent Ionisation-Time of Flight-Mass Spectrometry (SRI-ToF-MS) instrument is capable of meeting all of these requirements. With its high mass resolution (up to m/Δm of 8000), the application of variations in reduced electric field strength (E/N) and use of different reagent ions, the ambiguity of a nominal (monoisotopic) m/z is reduced and hence the identification of chemicals in a complex chemical environment with a high level of confidence is enabled. In this study we report the use of a SRI-ToF-MS instrument to investigate the reactions of H3O(+), O2 (+), NO(+) and Kr(+) with 10 readily available (at the time of purchase) new psychoactive substances, namely 4-fluoroamphetamine, methiopropamine, ethcathinone, 4-methylethcathinone, N-ethylbuphedrone, ethylphenidate, 5-MeO-DALT, dimethocaine, 5-(2-aminopropyl)benzofuran and nitracaine. In particular, the dependence of product ion branching ratios on the reduced electric field strength for all reagent ions was investigated and is reported here. The results reported represent a significant amount of new data which will be of use for the development of drug detection techniques suitable for real world scenarios.</p>

<p>Here we demonstrate the use of a switchable reagent ion proton transfer reaction mass spectrometry (SRI-PTR-MS) instrument to improve the instrument&#39;s selectivity for the detection of the explosive compounds 2,4,6 trinitrotoluene (TNT), 1,3,5 trinitrobenzene (TNB), pentaerythritol tetranitrate (PETN), and cyclotrimethylenetrinitramine (RDX). Selectivity is improved owing to the production of different product ions resulting from changes in the reagent ion-molecule chemistry. To be of use as an analytical tool for homeland security applications, it is important that the reagent ions (and hence product ions) can be rapidly changed (within seconds) from H3O+ to another dominant ion species if the technology is to be acceptable. This paper presents measurements that show how it is possible to rapidly switch the reagent ion from H3O+ to either O2+ or NO+ to enhance selectivity for the detection of the four explosives named above. That switching reagent ions can be done quickly results from the fact that the recombination energies of O2+ and NO+ are less than the ionisation potential of H2O, i.e. charge transfer cannot occur which otherwise would result in ions that can react efficiently with water (e.g. H2O+ + H2O &rarr; H3O+ + OH) leading to H3O+ becoming the dominant reagent ion. Reaction processes observed are non-dissociative charge transfer (O2+ with TNT and TNB), dissociative charge transfer (O2+ with TNT) and adduct formation (NO+ with PETN and RDX). O2+ is found to be unreactive with PETN and RDX, and under the conditions operating in the reaction region of the PTR-MS only a low signal associated with NO+&middot;TNT was observed. No NO+&middot;TNB was detected.</p>

The isomers 4-methylethcathinone and N-ethylbuphedrone are substitutes for the recently banned drug mephedrone. We find that with conventional proton transfer reaction mass spectrometry (PTR-MS), it is not possible to distinguish between these two isomers, because essentially for both substances, only the protonated molecules are observed at a mass-to-charge ratio of 192 (C12H18NO+). However, when utilising an advanced PTR-MS instrument that allows us to switch the reagent ions (selective reagent ionisation) from H3O+ (which is commonly used in PTR-MS) to NO+, O2+ and Kr+, characteristic product (fragment) ions are detected: C4H10N+ (72 Da) for 4-methylethcathinone and C5H12N+ (86 Da) for N-ethylbuphedrone; thus, selective reagent ionisation MS proves to be a powerful tool for fast detection and identification of these compounds. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Security and protection against terrorist attacks are major issues in modern society. One especially challenging task is the monitoring and protection of air conditioning and heating systems of buildings against terrorist attacks with toxic chemicals. As existing technologies have low selectivity, long response times or insufficient sensitivity, there is a need for a novel approach such as we present here.We have analyzed various chemical warfare agents (CWAs) and/or toxic industrial compounds (TICs) and related compounds, namely phosgene, diphosgene, chloroacetone, chloroacetophenone, diisopropylaminoethanol, and triethyl phosphate, utilizing a high-resolution proton-transfer-reaction time-of-flight mass spectrometry (PTR-TOFMS) instrument with the objective of finding key product ions and their intensities, which will allow a low-resolution quadrupole mass spectrometry based PTR-MS system to be used with high confidence in the assignment of threat agents in the atmosphere.We obtained high accuracy PTR-TOFMS mass spectra of the six compounds under study at two different values for the reduced electric field in the drift tube (E/N). From these data we have compiled a table containing product ions, and isotopic and E/N ratios for highly selective threat compound detection with a compact and cost-effective quadrupole-based PTR-MS instrument. Furthermore, using chloroacetophenone (tear gas), we demonstrated that this instrument's response is highly linear in the concentration range of typical Acute Exposure Guideline Levels (AEGLs).On the basis of the presented results it is possible to develop a compact and cost-effective PTR-QMS instrument that monitors air supply systems and triggers an alarm as soon as the presence of a threat agent is detected. We hope that this real-time surveillance device will help to seriously improve safety and security in environments vulnerable to terrorist attacks with toxic chemicals.

Proton transfer reaction-mass spectrometry (PTR-MS) offers many advantages for trace gas analysis, including no sample preparation, real-time analysis, high selectivity and sensitivity, ultra-low detection limits and very short response times. These characteristic features have made it an ideal tool for many applications in science, technology and society. Here we will discuss recent developments, in particular advances concerning sensitivity, selectivity and general applicability.

We present here a slightly modified PTR-MS instrument that is not only capable to ionize trace compounds in air via proton-transfer-reactions (PTR) but is also able to ionize via charge-transfer-reactions (CTR) with help of reagent ions (Kr+ in particular) possessing higher ionization energies than common air constituents. This means that with minor adaptations a common PTR-MS instrument can be used for the analysis of nearly all available substance classes by using both PTR and/or CTR ionization. Especially in environmental research, the field of application where PTR-MS is used most widely, now not only trace volatile organic compounds (benzene, toluene, etc.) but additionally also very important (inorganic) substances, such as CO, CO2, CH4, NOx, and SO2, can be detected and quantified with the same instrument. As all ionizing agents are produced in a hollow cathode discharge ion source with good purity no additional mass filter is needed for reagent ion selection (as in other analytical methods employed) and remaining reagent ion impurities can be clearly distinguished from isobaric sample compounds due to the high mass resolution of the time-of-flight mass spectrometer used in the present PTR-MS instrument (PTR-TOF 8000). We present data obtained with various gas standards ranging from a “classical” PTR-MS aromatics mixture to samples containing molecules possessing ionization energies all the way up to 14 eV (CO).

Since many years PTR-MS is a well established technique in trace gas analysis with its major advantages of having very short response times of below 100ms and outstanding detection limits in the single digit pptv region. However, the quadrupole mass filter based instruments used so far cannot separate isobaric compounds due to lack of mass resolution. To overcome this problem Ionicon developed the so called PTR-TOF 8000 instrument, which couples the well established PTR ionization technique with a high resolution time-of-flight (TOF) mass analyzer. In contrast to a quadrupole based PTR-MS where only one nominal mass at a time can be monitored, the PTR-TOF acquires whole mass spectra in split-seconds at a resolution of up to 8.000 m/{delta}m (FWHM). As there might be applications where an enormous mass resolution is not necessarily needed, but the sensitivity has to be as high as possible, we now developed an instrument (called PTR-TOF 2000) that performs with an enhanced sensitivity at the expense of a somewhat lower mass resolution.

This work demonstrates for the first time the potential of using recent developments in proton transfer reaction mass spectrometry for the rapid detection and identification of chemical warfare agents (CWAs) in real-time. A high-resolution (m/Deltam up to 8000) and high-sensitivity (approximately 50 cps/ppbv) proton transfer reaction time-of-flight mass spectrometer (PTR-TOF 8000 from Ionicon Analytik GmBH) has been successfully used to detect a number of CWA simulants at room temperature; namely dimethyl methylphosphonate, diethyl methylphosphonate, diisopropyl methylphosphonate, dipropylene glycol monomethyl ether and 2-chloroethyl ethyl sulfide. Importantly, we demonstrate in this paper the potential to identify CWAs with a high level of confidence in complex chemical environments, where multiple threat agents and interferents could also be present in trace amounts, thereby reducing the risk of false positives. Instantaneous detection and identification of trace quantities of chemical threats using proton transfer reaction mass spectrometry could form the basis for a timely warning system capability with greater precision and accuracy than is currently provided by existing analytical technologies.

The influence of gel texture on retronasal aroma release during mastication was followed by means of real-time proton-transfer reaction mass spectrometry and compared to sensory perception of overall aroma intensity. A clear correlation was found between individual-specific consumption patterns and the respective physicochemical release patterns in vivo. A modified data analysis approach was used to monitor the aroma changes during the mastication process. It was found that the temporal resolution of the release profile played an important role in adequate description of the release processes. On the basis of this observation, a hypothesis is presented for the observed differences in intensity rating.

An extensive analysis of the headspace (HS) of coffee brew using proton-transfer-reaction mass-spectrometry (PTR-MS) is presented. In particular, we present a set of methods that link mass spectral peaks, as observed in PTR-MS, to chemical compounds in the HS of coffee. Combining all this information, a tentative assignment and rough quantification of liquid coffee HS is presented. Coffee was chosen because it contains a large number of chemically diverse volatile organic compounds (VOCs), representing a challenging system for on-line analysis by PTR-MS.

Liquid–gas partition coefficients (HLC) of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in water–air systems are determined using a novel dynamic approach by coupling a stripping cell directly to a proton-transfer-reaction mass spectrometer (PTR–MS). Two complementary set-ups are evaluated, one suited for determining HLCs of highly volatile compounds (<10 M/atm), the second adapted for medium to low volatile compounds (∼10–1000 M/atm). We validated the method using 2-butanone, investigated the temperature dependence of various HLCs and applied the stripping technique to a series of VOCs. Compared to alternative state-of-the-art techniques the present approach has the advantage of being simple, fast and less prone to artefacts. Furthermore, it allows to quantify volatile compounds in the headspace without calibration or addition of standards.

Recently we introduced a dynamic approach to determine Henry’s law constants (HLCs) of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in water, and applied it to a series organic compounds dissolved in pure water. Here, we first discuss a further development of the original approach such that it can be applied to complex liquid food systems (coffee). Second, we examine the impact of non-volatile constituents on the HLC. More specifically, we evaluate the impact of non-volatile coffee constituents on the HLC of 2-methylpropanal, 3- and 2-methylbutanal, dimethylsulfide, dimethyldisulfide and ethyl-2-methylbutyrate. Finally, we demonstrate that the concentration on the VOC in solution does not affect the HLC, over the investigated concentration range of 10−4 to 10 ppm.

A proton-transfer-reaction mass spectrometer (PTR-MS) was used for fast-response measurements of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) onboard the NOAA research vessel Ronald H. Brown during leg 2 (4 March–23 March) of the INDOEX 1999 cruise. In this paper, we present a first overview of the distribution of acetonitrile, methanol, acetone, and acetaldehyde over a broad spatial extent of the Indian Ocean (19°N–13°S, 67°E–75°E). The prevailing atmospheric circulation during the winter monsoon transported polluted air from India and the Middle East over the Indian Ocean to meet pristine southern hemispheric air at the intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ). The chemical composition of air parcels changed according to their geographic origin, which was traced by backtrajectory analysis. The relative abundance of acetonitrile, a selective tracer for biomass burning, to that of carbon monoxide, a general tracer for incomplete combustion, reflected the signature of biomass burning or fossil fuel combustion. This indicated a strong biomass burning impact in W-India, mixed pollution sources in NE-India, and the dominance of fossil fuel combustion in the Middle East. Biomass burning impacted air was rich in methanol (0.70–1.60 ppbv), while acetone (0.80–2.40 ppbv) and acetaldehyde (0.25–0.50 ppbv) were elevated in all continental air masses. Pollution levels decreased toward the ITCZ resulting in minima for methanol, acetone, and acetaldehyde of 0.50, 0.45, and 0.12 ppbv, respectively. The observed abundances suggest that there are unidentified sources of acetone and acetaldehyde in biomass burning impacted air masses and in remote marine air.

Biogenic oxygenated volatile organic compound (VOC) fluxes have been directly measured by eddy covariance using the combination of a fast response, real-time \{VOC\} sensor and an acoustic anemometer. \{VOC\} detection is based on proton-transfer reaction mass spectrometry which has currently a response time of ca. 0.8&#xa0;s and the system is suitable for making nearly unattended, long-term and continuous measurements of \{VOC\} fluxes. The eddy covariance system has a detection limit, for most VOCs, of less than 0.1&#xa0;mg&#xa0;m−2&#xa0;h−1. The system was field tested above a hayfield near St. Johann, Austria where cut and drying grasses released a variety of VOCs. High fluxes were observed for about 2 days after cutting and were dominated by methanol (1–8.4&#xa0;mg&#xa0;m−2&#xa0;h−1), acetaldehyde (0.5–3&#xa0;mg&#xa0;m−2&#xa0;h−1), hexenals (0.1–1.5&#xa0;mg&#xa0;m−2&#xa0;h−1) and acetone (0.1–1.5&#xa0;mg&#xa0;m−2&#xa0;h−1). The eddy covariance measurements generally agreed with flux estimates based on enclosure measurements and surface layer gradients. The sensitivity and selectivity of the system make it suitable for quantifying the fluxes of the dominant biogenic \{VOCs\} from a variety of landscapes and sources.

Numerous publications have described measurements of breath isoprene in humans, and there has been a hope that breath isoprene analyses could be a noninvasive diagnostic tool to assess blood cholesterol levels or cholesterol synthesis rate. However, significant analytic problems in breath isoprene analysis and variability in isoprene levels with age, exercise, diet, etc., have limited the usefulness of these measurements. Here, we have applied proton transfer reaction-mass spectrometry to this problem, allowing on-line detection of breath isoprene. We show that breath isoprene concentration increases within a few seconds after exercise is started as a result of a rapid increase in heart rate and then reaches a lower steady state when breath rate stabilizes. Additional experiments demonstrated that increases in heart rate associated with standing after reclining or sleeping are associated with increased breath isoprene concentrations. An isoprene gas-exchange model was developed and shows excellent fit to breath isoprene levels measured during exercise. In a preliminary experiment, we demonstrated that atorvastatin therapy leads to a decrease in serum cholesterol and low-density-lipoprotein levels and a parallel decrease in breath isoprene levels. This work suggests that there is constant endogenous production of isoprene during the day and night and reaffirms the possibility that breath isoprene can be a noninvasive marker of cholesterologenesis if care is taken to measure breath isoprene under standard conditions at constant heart rate.