Hybrid dissociation modes in a portable ion trap mass spectrometer for enhanced specificity in complex mixture analysis.

Authors

Jun Zhan, La Chen, Gangqiang Li, Luhong Wen

Published in

Analytica chimica acta. Volume 1416. Pages 345758. Sep 22, 2026. Epub May 28, 2026.

Abstract

Direct ionization ion trap mass spectrometry (ITMS) consistently faces challenges from matrix interference, necessitating highly specific analytical strategies to ensure reliable compound identification. However, the performance of tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) in conventional ITMS systems, which primarily rely on collision-induced dissociation (CID) for ion activation-is often constrained by the low-mass cutoff (LMCO) effect and suboptimal fragmentation efficiency. To address these limitations, we developed a portable ITMS platform that integrates both beam-type collision-induced dissociation (bCID) and CID technologies. In this platform, a flared ion guide serves dual roles as an ion transfer device and a collision cell for bCID. Compared with a parallel square-rod ion guide, the flared design-without compromising instrument portability shortens the dissociation time from 40 to 20 ms and increases the total dissociation efficiency by approximately 10%. Experimental results demonstrated that the bCID activation method effectively alleviates the LMCO restriction, while simultaneously improving fragmentation efficiency and analytical throughput, particularly for low-mass fragments. Furthermore, bCID provides greater flexibility in modulating fragment ion abundance through dissociation voltage adjustment and exhibits a distinct advantage in dissociating molecules containing strong chemical bonds. In the analysis of complex matrices such as hair and serum, bCID enhanced the signal-to-noise (S/N) ratios for compounds including tramadol, metonitazene and brodifacoum compared to CID. This enhancement was achieved by strengthening low-mass fragment ion intensities while reducing background noise through the breakdown of matrix-derived interference ions into non-specific fragments. Additionally, the complementary use of CID and bCID offered superior specificity for detecting designer drugs (e.g., etomidate and propoxate) in urine and food additives (e.g., saccharin sodium and benzoic acid) in ham, by generating a sufficient set of diagnostic ions with high abundance and S/N ratios. These findings underscore the importance of incorporating the hybrid dissociation modes into portable ITMS systems for on-site analysis of complex samples.

PMID:
42401465
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 05 Jul 2026.

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