Mass Spectrometry for Advanced Gas Analysis

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New feedstocks and materials are introduced into the energy and chemical industries. Biomass, waste and CO2 are of special interest for the production of fuels and value-added chemicals. It is more important than ever to understand how we can get the most out of our energy resources in order to match the needs of future generations. Within this context, reactor engineering research, catalyst design and understanding of chemical reaction mechanisms are of primary importance. Improvements in experimental and analytical techniques in combination with advances in computational methods are leading to new insights into catalyst behavior and design of novel materials and processes. Mechanistic understanding of chemical reaction pathways with their corresponding kinetic description can only be acquired by using advanced characterization methods. Mass spectrometry is one the techniques that can used to analyze how fast and how much of a reactant is converted and product is formed during a chemical reaction. The proposed instrument is a quadrupole mass spectrometer capable of identifying and quantifying gas and vapor components based on their mass-to-charge ratio. It is designed for high analytical repeatability, accuracy, long term stability with a dynamic range from 10 ppb to 100% and a fast sampling rate in the order of milliseconds. This particular device enables isotope tracing experiments and steady-state isotopic transient kinetic analyses. In combination with surface sensitive Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy that determines adsorbed molecules on the catalyst surface and intermediates under reaction conditions, detailed catalyzed reaction pathways can be investigated. This is important for the development of catalyzed and plasma-assisted conversion processes outlined in the research proposal. Utilizing the state-of-the-art setup will allow the HQP’s (McGill's Faculty of Engineering and Faculty of Science) to gain comprehensive knowledge in gas analysis, surface/material characterization and reaction engineering, which is needed to pursue their research in catalytic process and plasma engineering, gasification, combustion, and green chemistry.