Presentation Profile
Analysis of Nanoparticles in Organic Solvents by Single Particle ICP-MS with a Dynamic Reaction Cell
Currently Scheduled: 10/14/2025 - 12:30 PM - 1:00 PM
Room: Wisteria
Main Author
Aaron Hineman - PerkinElmer
Abstract:
Metallic contamination in organic solvents can severely compromise product integrity in ultra-trace applications, particularly in the semiconductor industry. Among various impurities, metals, most notably iron (Fe), are frequently encountered and can significantly degrade both product performance and value. Single particle inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (SP-ICP-MS) has emerged as a powerful technique for nanoparticle analysis, capable of detecting, counting, and sizing individual particles at concentrations as low as 100–1000 particles/mL. However, interferences — especially polyatomic species — can limit the system's detection capabilities. For example, accurate Fe nanoparticle detection is hindered by the ⁴⁰Ar¹⁶O⁺ interference on ⁵⁶Fe⁺. This work demonstrates the use of SP-ICP-MS in Reaction mode with Dynamic Bandpass Tuning (DRC) to effectively eliminate polyatomic interferences for iron and other elemental nanoparticle impurities, such as silica. This approach enables reliable detection and characterization of metallic nanoparticles in organic solvents, achieving lower size detection limits and improved analytical confidence.
