ABIRD:Active Background Ion Reduction Device

for nanospray ESI

• By John Neveu• ESI Source Solutions, LLC• Woburn, MA USA

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Nanospray ESI (n-ESI) is a common technique for interfacing capillary chromatography systems

with a mass spectrometer.

n-ESI is typically done without supplied gas, leaving the background ion signal subject to variable ambient laboratory air conditions.

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ABIRD works by treating the ambient lab air, which is then directed to the n-ESI spray formation zone in an open source.

ABIRD also works by treating the ambient lab air which then displaces untreated air in a semi closed source.

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Typical Orbitrap full MS no ABIRD

7.59e5

Typical Orbitrap full MS with ABIRD.

5.00e4

ABIRD on an Orbitrap shows greater than a 10x reduction in background ions when operating.

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ABIRD installed on an LTQ shows 10x reduction in background ion signal.

2.36e3

Typical LTQ full MS with ABIRD.

Typical LTQ full MS no ABIRD

2.38e4

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Left panel: 5 min chromatogram BP 395-2000Da, ABIRD on then off and then on

again.

Right panel, top: 1min summed spectra, ABIRD off, TIC 1.27E6

Right panel, bottom: 1 min

summed spectra, ABIRD on, TIC 4.6E4

ESI SourceSolutions Typical ABIRD behavior on a typical day.

ABIRD significantly improves signal to noise and signal stability across a chromatographic run.

No ABIRD

With ABIRD

ABIRD Installations these from ourEU distributor MS Wil

more here: https://www.flickr.com/search/?w=48511568@N08&q=abird

ABIRD device in place on LTQ-Orbitrap with a New Objective Picoview source:

Joint Marketing Agreement with Thermo Scientific on the use of ABIRD on Thermo

nanospray sources.Thermo Fisher Scientific and ESI Source Solutions have agreed that:

•ABIRD has been configured and tested with Thermo Scientific™ nano-electrospray ion sources: EASY-Spray™, Nanospray Flex™ and Nanospray-II, and is fully compatible with these sources.

The benefits of ABIRD are simple: •ABIRD isolates the inlet from changing background ions, which is critical for extended quantitative or comparative analyses.•ABIRD reduces background ions, enhancing S/N ratio quite dramatically in many cases

We look forward to promoting ABIRD on Thermo Scientific instruments worldwide!

Summary:

• ABIRD imparts a controlled low level background ion signal to nanospray ESI mass spectrometers across a wide mass range.

• ABIRD protects the instrument from ambient spikes in laboratory air quality, crucial for quantitative analysis.

• Installation solutions are available for almost any nanospray source on the market, including DIY’er kits.

• ABIRD is a smart addition to any nanospray source.

Many more details at company website of: www.esisourcesolutions.com