help!! LC/MS 2020

Discussions about GC-MS, LC-MS, LC-FTIR, and other "coupled" analytical techniques.

5 posts Page 1 of 1
Hello everyone,

I work in a laboratory on fruit and vegetable matrices. The laboratory is equipped with an LC-MS 2020 and PDA Shimadzu.
No, I've never tried this instrumentation brand and I'm trying to turn on the instrumentation (after 1 year of stop). I turned on the car yesterday and I left it to flux with the pre-set conditions and this morning I found the tank of the N2 empty (yesterday it was 180 bar).
The conditions are as follows

ESI interface

Temperature 350 ° C
DL temperature 280 ° C
Nebulizing gas 1.5 L / min
Thermal block 270 ° C
Drying gas 3 L / min

Pump:
Flow 0.2 ml / min
Zorbax column 2,1 x 5 150 mm, 0,1 diameter

I would like to know what you think of the operating conditions, if they are wrong ??
to premise that there are no losses, the cylinder is normal that ends after a day?
I do not understand why the mass detector does not "see" me anything since trying to do tuning stops at 99% "Initial Adjusting"

Thank you all! I hope in your help and answer
(1) ESI uses a lot of nitrogen. If you run from cylinders, yes, you will run out very rapidly. I would have expected you to get several days rather than just one, but you will be replacing cylinders several times a week. Most people would consider using nitrogen from a generator.
(2) Your drying gas setting looks a bit low to me. I'd have expected 10-15L/min, but there is help available (press F1 when the appropriate settings are visible).
(3) My experience of tuning the LCMS2020 isn't very happy. If I am thinking correctly, I believe you attach a special capillary (it's not a normal bit of hplc tubing despite its colour and appearance) between a bottle of Shimadzu's calibrant and the spray chamber, and the instrument pressurises the bottle. It actually uses some of the nitrogen to do this. The calibrant is a bit sticky and if it wasn't washed out from the capillary the last time someone tuned, it could be that it's now blocked, and nothing is coming out. The software should object if this happens.
The good news is that the 2020 is a very stable instrument (single quads usually are). If you can find the last working tune-file from before it was turned off for a year, it's possible that the tune file will still be a good starting-point (in the manual, it shows what the tune ions should look like; you can check if you see anything). I have no idea what a year's storage does for the electron multiplier though; it might not be healthy.
You have been super very kind. thanks for the informations.
I have checked and dismantled the capillary from the "Duis" and trying to blow it in water the bubbles can escape.
At the moment I have to settle for the bomb because I'm "renewing" the laboratory of my company and therefore too much money.
The last "tune" is still present in the archive so I can also use those conditions?
Now I will check the draft tube of the calibration solution. In case how can I clean? what can I do ?

An advice: how can I reactivate the column? reverse verse and I work in IPA, MEOH and ACN?
try the last tune and see what happens... if you can see background ions when you run blank solvent, it's a good sign, and if you can see a standard when you inject it, it's even better.

Others will know better than me about reactivating ancient columns, but if you've got a C18 column that's been stored for a year, provided it wasn't left in a really bad choice of solvent, it's probably still fine, and will need nothing more than a brief flush in your mobile phase.

Good luck!
I tried to clean everything, the DUIS capillary is clean, the tubing too. Trying to make the tune, however, I do not see anything despite the container is full. I checked that during a standard test in my capillary the tip near the cone was "electrified". How can I show the mass? increase gas? Clean up something? I need help
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