Triple-quadrupole ICP-MS

我们正在申请一种三四极(“三四极”或“QQQ”)电感耦合等离子体质谱仪，这是一种质谱仪，能够测量各种地质材料(岩石、水、土壤、碳酸盐等)中的痕量金属浓度。三重四分仪可以测量到非常低的浓度(有时是PPQ水平)的痕量元素，并可以利用其碰撞单元消除光谱干扰。因此，它将允许我们使用更少的样品(这意味着地质沉积物的时间分辨率可以大大提高)，我们可以开始使用不同的诊断示踪剂，如水和碳酸盐材料中的稀土元素。三个四通道的电感耦合等离子体质谱将取代我们现有的“普通”的单四通道电感耦合等离子体质谱仪，因此设备和技术支持已经可用。它将主要用于分析自然水和实验水中的风化反应、地质记录中的粘土和碳酸盐、软体动物的个体生长线以及生物矿化过程中的诊断微量元素。总体而言，这将代表着我们能力的巨大变化。

We are applying for a triple-quadrupole (“triple-quad” or “QQQ”) ICP-MS, which is a mass spectrometer capable of measuring trace-metal concentrations in a wide variety of geological materials (rocks, waters, soils, carbonates, etc.). A triple-quad can measure trace elements down to very low concentrations (on occasion ppq levels), and can eliminate spectral interferences using its collision cell. As such, it will allow us to use significantly less sample (meaning that temporal resolution in geological sediments can be vastly increased), and we can start using different diagnostic tracers, such as the REE in waters and carbonate materials. The triple-quad ICP-MS will replace our current old ‘normal’ single-quad ICP-MS, hence facilities and technical support are already available. It will primarily be used for analysing natural and experimental waters from weathering reactions, clays and carbonates from the geological record, individual growth lines from molluscs and diagnostic trace elements during biomineralisation. Overall, it would represent a massive step-change in our abilities.