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A novel nonmetallized tip for electrospray mass spectrometry at nanoliter flow rate

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Journal of the American Society for Mass Spectrometry

Abstract

We report the fabrication of a durable nonmetallized nanospray tip. This nanospray tip does not require complex preparation procedures such as chemical treatment, deposition of gold or SiOx vapor. It was fabricated by pulling a heated glass capillary of 1.1 mm internal diameter to produce a fine tip with an orifice of 10–15 µm in diameter. A 10 µm gold-plated tungsten wire was inserted through the capillary tip. This tungsten wire played a central role in the operation of this durable nanospray tip by providing electrical contact. This type of nanospray tip could withstand electrical discharges and sustained spraying of solution at nanoliter flow rate for more than 3 h. Using insulin (35 µM) and myoglobin (1 µM) solutions, useful mass spectrum could be acquired with low fmol sensitivity.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemistry, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, N. T., Hong Kong

    Karen W. Y. Fong & T. -W. Dominic Chan

Authors
  1. Karen W. Y. Fong
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  2. T. -W. Dominic Chan
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Correspondence to T. -W. Dominic Chan.

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Fong, K.W.Y., Chan, T.W.D. A novel nonmetallized tip for electrospray mass spectrometry at nanoliter flow rate. J Am Soc Mass Spectrom 10, 72–75 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1016/S1044-0305(98)00127-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/S1044-0305(98)00127-5

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