BenchTOF-dx™: Time-of-Flight (TOF) Mass Spectrometer
BenchTOF-dx offers a unique combination of high-performance & affordability to any GC/MS user interested in trace detection.jpg)
BenchTOF-dx is a fast, high performance reflectron time-of-flight (TOF) mass spectrometer (MS) for analysing ultra-trace level volatile and semi-volatile organic chemicals in complex real-world samples. Novel architecture and proprietary noise reduction algorithms offer and unrivalled combination of:
- Sensitivity
- Compound resolution
- Spectral quality, and
- Robust operation
All clear advantages for trace analysis
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BenchTOF-dx Main Features
- State-of-the-art ion optics & direct ion extraction technology maximise sensitivity. Full range spectral data at quadrupole SIM sensitivity levels (>800:1 s/n for 1 pg OFN while acquiring over full mass range)
- Enhanced detection of trace target analytes
- High speed spectral acquisition (10,000 Hz) for compatibility with fast GC, GCxGC (Comprehensive 2D GC) and complex conventional GC profiles. Up to 560 spectra written to disk every second.
- Mass range of 1 to 1000 amu, with mass resolution of 1000, ensures compatibility with every GC application
- Mass spectra simultaneously stored in both true centroid & continuum/profile data formats for accurate ion ration determination (Continuum mode to 0.01 amu resolution)
- Extreme stability of both mass axis & detector response reduces tuning/calibration frequency, optimising system productivity
- Uniquely powerful noise reduction software minimises requirement for manual data manipulation
- Integrates with popular GC/MS data analysis software to eliminate operator learning curve
- Optimum versatility: Compatible with all makes of GC and a wide range of hyphenated techniques
- Low cost for performance in a compact technology that operates in standard laboratory environments ensuing fast return on investment
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Enhanced sensitivity with direct extraction (dx)
In quadrupole MS instruments only a proportion of the ions produced in the ion source actually reach the detector because the technology utilises a mass filter which only allows one mass ion through the detector at a time. This reduces sensitivity.
In TOF MS all the ions entering the flight tube reach the detector without filtering. The result is greater sensitivity; the same sensitivity in full scan mode as afforded by quadrupoles in single ion monitoring (SIM) mode.
In traditional TOF design this theoretical sensitivity is not reached because of the manner in which ions are extracted from the ion source (orthogonal extraction).
Using innovative ion optics, BenchTOF-dx dispenses with the orthogonal extraction of ions and adopts a cutting-edge and highly effective direct extraction (dx) approach. Ions are directly extracted from the ion source and transferred to the flight tube with minimal loss. The result is enhanced sensitivity over other TOF instruments using orthogonal extraction
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BenchTOF-dx: Robust answer for demanding GC/MS applications
Maximum uptime and productivity is ensured by:
- Mass ion stability: Unaffected by diurnal temperature variations and other factors
- Linear for 4 orders of magnitude which reduces error and minimises calibration frequency
- Robust mechanical design with easy component access for routine maintenance
- Comprehensive yet intuitive control software
- Automation of key system control parameters (e.g. detector optimisation)
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Interfaces with most brands of GC & with existing GC/MS software
BenchTOF-dx offers the option of using its own comprehensive data analysis software (dx-View™) or integration with the data analysis systems of major brands of GC/MS via dx-Connect™
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Compatible third-party GC/MS analysis options include:
- Agilent Technologies ChemStation
- Thermo Fisher XCalibur®, and
- Shimadzu GCMS solutions
dx-Connect offers:
- Real-time data view capability
- Synchronisation with the GC sequence
- Flexible data format out options
Using BenchTOF-dx and the dx-Connect facility, GC parameters and analytical sequence developments are all set up and controlled using the appropriate existing software in the same way as other GC/MS systems in the laboratory.
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dx-View
dx-View is the proprietary data processing software package for BenchTOF-dx. It can be used as an alternative to third-party GC/MS data processing packages. |
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Dynamic Background Compensation (DBC): Uniquely powerful background elimination - operates automatically & in real-time
DBC is an innovative real-time data processing algorithm implemented as standard on BenchTOF-dx. It uses an innovative mathemetical approach to distinguish and eliminate background interference from real chromatographic peaks, even at the lowest levels. It accomodates conventional and high-speed GC and is a dynamic process, compensating for the chromatographic background as it changes throughout a run, but without compromising any peak-related information.
Two files are written, one with DBC data and other other of non-DBC data. A generic, stand-alone version of the BenchTOF-dx DBC facility allowing users to apply the advantages of DBC to other standard GC/MS systems in the laboratory network is called ClearView. Further information on ClearView can be found here.
Quantitation
By selectively eliminating interfering background ions DBC also simplifies integration, improving both quantitative accuracy and run-to-run reproducibility.
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Original TIC data (top) without DBC compensation. Original TIC data (middle) with on-line DBC compensation. Data handling options (bottom): Library search, extracted ion chromatograms (EIC) etc.
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Elimination of spectral skew aids library identification
The speed of BenchTOF-dx spectral acquisition (10,000 full scans every second) makes it the ideal MS platform for resolving individual components in complex total ion chromatogram (TIC) profiles.
This is partly because the scan speed of BenchTOF-dx totally eliminates spectral skew within and across a peak.
Skew occurs in slower scanning instruments (e.g. quadrupoles) because the ratio of ions eluting from the GC column changes during the finite time it takes to scan across the mass range. Speeding up the scanning rate can eliminate the spectral skew, but a lowering of sensitivity is the compromise.
BenchTOF-dx eliminates spectral skew without compromising instrument sensitivity. This improves the match quality of library search data from scans at the start or end of peaks, thereby aiding the identification of analytes of interest.
This absence of “skew” also enables BenchTOF-dx spectra to be used directly in advanced data analysis/ interpretation software such as ALMSCO TargetView
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