Supports domestic MS

At the 2013 Inorganic and Isotope Mass Spectrometry Conference, Guo Dongfa, a researcher at the Beijing Institute of Geological Sciences at the Nuclear Industry Department, made a report entitled “Application Practice for Domestic Mass Spectrometers.” He cited three major reasons for using domestic mass spectrometers. Guo Dongfa researcher added Tianrui Instrument's ICP-MS and Guangzhou Minxin TOF-MS products, developed LI/TI-TOF-MS and various sample preparation devices, and established corresponding analysis methods; through his own practice, empirical The usability, research value, and return on investment of home-made mass spectrometers have been demonstrated; some of the scientific research achieved has been demonstrated in oral reports and posters. Guo Dongfa’s teacher’s identity as an instrument application expert who has used many high-end mass spectrometers to support domestic mass spectrometry is admirable. During the meeting, the analyst and test editor of Encyclopedia was very honored to interview Guo Dongfa researcher. Guo Dongfa teacher shared more views on the application of mass spectrometry and the development of mass spectrometry in China and hoped to inspire all interested parties...

Prof. Guo Dongfa of the Nuclear Geology Research Institute of Beijing Institute of Geology Joined ICP-MS and Inorganic Mass Spectrometry. From 1984 to 1986, Guo Dongfa was a professor at East China Institute of Technology. He began using ICP spectrometers at that time, and the first one was produced by China Tieling Instrument Factory. ICP spectrometer. From 1986 to 1989, he studied postgraduate at the Beijing Institute of Geology in the nuclear industry. After graduation, he worked in the Institute. At the time, Professor Jiang Tieshan, a researcher at the time, introduced China's first imported ICP spectrometer: Shimadzu's multichannel ICP-OES spectrometer. Professor Guo Dongfa carried out a lot of research work on this ICP spectrometer during his graduate study, such as: flow injection, hydride generation-ICP analysis method. With the ICP spectrometer's operating experience, he began to have a keen interest in ICP-MS with higher sensitivity and stronger detection capability.

In 1992, Guo Dongfa’s teacher had the opportunity to study in Japan and first encountered ICP-MS (the original joint venture between Agilent and Japan’s Yokogawa Electric). After returning home, Guo Dongfa’s teacher remembered buying an ICP-MS for his laboratory. In 1997 Guo Dongfa’s teacher received state funding to purchase the laboratory's first magnetic high-resolution ICP-MS (Element, Finnigan, Germany) and established a high-level ICP-MS laboratory; There are fewer than 10 ICP-MS users in China. Using ICP-MS technology, Guo Dongfa’s laboratory has carried out a large number of scientific research and production in the fields of nuclear fuel cycle industry and nuclear geology. Some of the research results have been displayed in related journals.

If not just ICP-MS, but the use of mass spectrometers, Guo Dongfa’s laboratory has used almost every major inorganic and isotope mass spectrum in the world, such as gas isotope mass spectrometers (early Soviet-produced gases isotope mass spectrometers, German production MAT251, MAT253, Delta-plus, Helix, etc., thermal ionization mass spectrometry TIMS (inorganic mass spectrometry Germany MAT261, MAT262, the British production ISOPROB-T, ISOPROB-X, etc.) series isotope mass spectrometer.

Hot spot applications and technical difficulties of ICP-MS are used as experts in the application of inorganic mass spectrometry. Guo Dongfa's teacher has also popularized inorganic mass spectrometry and ICP-MS knowledge for Xiao Bian.

It is widely used in various fields as a main instrument for the analysis of inorganic mass spectrometry. ICP-MS can measure most metals and some non-metallic elements in the periodic table. Since it is an element, then from an application point of view, it is closely related to the national economy, scientific development, and all aspects of our lives, such as energy, materials, high-purity materials, semiconductors, geology and other detection areas are inseparable from ICP-MS. In the current hotspots of environmental monitoring, ICP-MS can be applied to the determination of multiple elements in analytical objects such as particles, particles, and heavy metals.

In addition, ICP-MS can also be applied in the field of life sciences, including the detection of inorganic elements in cell tissues and detection of inorganic substances in biological samples. "In addition to biological samples, it is also used in the detection of medical materials," added Guo Dongfa, adding, "For example, dental materials are all inorganic elements that can be detected by ICP-MS. The artificial bone composition in medical materials is apatite. It is said that this is a mineral, and it is also a medical artificial bone. This type of material detection is also inseparable from ICP-MS."

Professor Guo Dongfa also pointed out that the report titled “Application Potential of ICP-MS in Life Sciences” brought by Professor Zhang Xinrong of Tsinghua University at this conference was very meaningful, demonstrating the potential of ICP-MS as an important life science analytical tool. , It has the ability of multi-component analysis and absolute quantification, and has wide application prospects in life science research. Professor Guo Dongfa also specifically mentioned that ICP-MS determination of the potential of non-metallic elements (B, S, P, As, Se, Ge, etc.) will open up the channels of inorganic and organic organisms for ICP-MS outside the inorganic world. Application development brings new opportunities.

How to eliminate or use interference in ICP-MS As we all know, ICP-MS has two major problems, one is matrix interference and the other is mass spectrometry. In response to these difficulties, there are already some methods to solve these two problems. Matrix interference removal methods include: improving the instrument itself, off-line chemical pretreatment, or on-line separation of the substrate by chemical reaction at the front end of the instrument. The technology provided by manufacturers, such as collision cells and reaction cells, is often used to remove mass spectral interferences.

In addition, a gas may be introduced to dissociate or compound the interferer for testing purposes. For example, for the determination of sulfur, oxygen can be added to make it into SO or SO2. Instead of measuring the isotopes of individual elements, molecular compounds are measured, and the interference of the original position is eliminated by converting the sulfur into components. Professor Guo Dongfa gave an example: “The analysis of gas mass spectrometry is very typical. When uranium-235 and uranium-238 are measured on the production line, the uranium is converted to uranium hexafluoride gas and measured by gas isotope mass spectrometry. Similarly, in ICP, -MS can also be eliminated by on-line gas-phase reactions during the determination of certain elements in MS."

The use of inorganic mass spectrometry with ICP ionization and laser, medium discharge low-temperature plasma technology and mass spectrometers is one of the development directions of future inorganic mass spectrometry. Without ICP, the sample is directly ionized without loss of fragmentation information. Because the sample is atomized and ionized at ICP 8000°C, the molecular information is relatively small; if the sample is not connected to ICP, the molecular information after ionization of the sample will be very rich, and it can be a useful feature information. For example, when detecting uranium tetrafluoride, if it passes ICP, it cannot detect fluorine completely, all of it is uranium, and it cannot distinguish whether the sample is uranium tetrafluoride or uranium; but if it is directly ionized with laser and combined with mass spectrometry, fluorine and uranium are used. The two signals can be clearly distinguished.

Guo Dongfa’s teacher said, “So we can use some interference phenomena to turn the disadvantages into benefits instead of eliminating them. For example, inorganic elements can easily form compounds in a vacuum environment, which is its natural condition. If there is interference, it is intentional. Adding in some of the reactants results in the formation of a compound, which is the use of interference.” One of the results presented by the team of Guo Dongfa’s team at the conference’s poster, the method of laser ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry to determine uranium-based nuclear material, took advantage of this One principle, the effect is very good.

In the future, several major development directions of inorganic mass spectrometers are to pursue higher performance in terms of their own performance, as well as their reliability and durability. Regarding the development direction of ICP-MS instrument technology, Guo Dongfa’s teacher said: First of all, from the instrument itself, the constant pursuit of higher indicators Is an eternal theme, including sensitivity, selectivity, high throughput, accuracy, repeatability, stability, etc.; Second, because mass spectrometry technology has become a routine analysis tool, in addition to indicators, but also the pursuit of reliability, durability Sex.

With regard to how to achieve the improvement of indicators, Professor Guo Dongfa introduced several technologies, such as the use of series ICP-MS/MS, ion transmission system changes, which can further eliminate the background and interference and improve the sensitivity; from the detector point of view, the ion Counting detectors, high-stability Faraday cups and other instrument hardware have room for continuous improvement, and there is also room for improvement in instrument software, such as the development of intelligent software and personalized custom software."

Summarizing the highlights of this session's report on mass spectrometry, Professor Guo Dongfa talked about solid sampling techniques and custom mass spectrometry instruments.

The new sample injection technology Guo Dongfa pointed out that the solid sample in-situ sampling technology is a major highlight of this session of the inorganic mass spectrometry conference. Several reporters talked about this technology in their reports. For example, Professor H. Wei of Xiamen University proposed a new technique of laser sputter ionization, which is simple and straightforward. The report of Xing Zhi of Tsinghua University is also very exciting. A solid sample was etched using LTP probes, using atomic spectroscopy or The new technology of plasma mass spectrometry can directly perform surface analysis and imaging analysis on solid samples.

In addition, the report of Professor Hou Xiandeng of the Analytical Test Center of Sichuan University proposed a new technique for photochemical vapor injection that can increase the efficiency of analyte introduction, increase selectivity, directly separate the matrix to reduce interference, and increase the sensitivity to reduce the detection limit. Analysing the morphology (including molecular morphology and elemental valence) becomes possible and is easily automated.

The development of customized mass spectrometry instruments for demand development promotes original innovation The traditional mass spectrometer instrument market has been basically monopolized by foreign instrument companies. The development of dedicated mass spectrometers for certain special problems is a major prospect for the development of mass spectrometry instrument companies in China. Professor Guo Dongfa also talked about some development ideas: “The development of dedicated mass spectrometers requires a cooperative approach. Mass spectrometry companies collaborate with industry experts to develop and customize them according to the specific needs of users. They can also be named according to the specific applications of the instrument. Developed aerosol mass spectrometer, our group's uranium isotope mass spectrometer, sulfur isotope mass spectrometer, etc."

Laboratory-developed laser thermal ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometer (LI/TI-TOF-MS)

It is understood that Guo Dongfa’s application in the nuclear industry Beijing Geological Research Institute is characterized by radionuclide analysis and isotope analysis, and has a large number of mass spectrometry instruments. Since 2011, the laboratory has assembled and set up a new laser thermal ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometer (LI/TI-TOF-MS). The company has provided TOF mass spectrometry and the rest has been designed, processed and assembled by the laboratory. software design. TI-TOF-MS can be used as a companion to magnetic mass spectrometry. Each method used to develop magnetic mass spectrometers has a long cycle because it is impossible to understand the isotope evaporation and ionization processes and conditions. With TI-TOF-MS, the detection process is straightforward and the development cycle of the magnetic mass spectrometry application method is greatly shortened. Realize the analysis of more elements on the periodic table, and promote detection methods and technological innovations. Guo Dongfa’s teacher stated that the purchase of foreign commercial instruments and the development of analysis and pre-processing methods were not innovative enough; now, according to their own research needs to develop instruments, there can be more original innovations in instrument detection technology.

The combination of application fields and instrument technology in the direction of future application of several major applications and technologies, Guo Dongfa teacher first talked about the research direction of materials genome mentioned by academician Wang Haizhou at this conference. It requires the basic unit of material properties to be found in the materials. Some of these basic units can use traditional elemental analysis techniques, and some basic units may exist in clusters. Clusters are broken with traditional ICP, so they need to The new injection technology, but in the analysis of clusters, the use of TOF will also have more advantages than the traditional quadrupole analyzer.

Secondly, the development of the combined use technology will promote the application of mass spectrometry in life sciences and medical diagnostics. The application in this field is mainly to find the basic unit related to the disease, and use the detection method to characterize the structure, qualitative and quantitative. The combination of inorganic and organic mass spectrometry with other technologies will make a big difference in these areas.

Guo Dongfa’s teacher concluded: “There are many research hotspots. My summary is that in situ, rapid, high-sensitivity, and high-precision are still the development direction of mass spectrometry; the analysis and testing technology must pursue four “high” and high accuracy (including Precision and accuracy, high sensitivity, high throughput, and high cost performance (including instrumentation and methods).

As we all know, Skyray Instruments launched GC-MS, ICP-MS, and LC-MS mass spectrometers in 2012. It is understood that Guo Dongfa’s laboratory has purchased the first commercialized ICP-MS manufactured by Tianrui, and according to the Kunshan Mass Spectrometry Association, Tianrui’s GC-MS has sold more than 50 sets. Tianrui Instrument developed mass spectrometers using different financing channels. In response to this question, we asked Mr. Guo Dongfa’s opinion. Guo Dongfa’s teacher talked about the following points:

Listed companies can better guarantee the continuity of scientific instrument research and development. Entrepreneurs should have vision and courage. Tianrui is a listed company and has the support of investors. Therefore, it has the strength to develop high-end mass spectrometry instruments. For the inspection of the output of product R&D projects, the market and the public must be more strict. This is extremely important for the development of Chinese instruments. The market should be allowed to allocate resources and test resources. This is also in line with the spirit of the Third Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee.

The input of mass spectrometry is bigger than it should be. It requires more sustained investment and the long-term vision of the entrepreneur. At present, the production cost of raw materials for a mass spectrometer is only a few hundred thousand; the upper limit of the price of imported instruments is there, a classic quadrupole ICP-MS, about 1.2 million yuan, Chinese companies have just made, super Without this price, there is really no profit. Therefore, even if a product is made, it requires long-term persistence and long-term investment.

For example, relying on projects to obtain financial support from the state can solve the thirst for a short time. Now, there are indeed some users who come in for production, research, and research to provide some opinions from the user's point of view. However, this has limited financial and manpower resources. Once the money is cut off, if there is no new funding source, the project may not be sustainable. The market is really cruel and doesn’t talk about it. The listed companies have faced the public from the very beginning, investing in any project has to face the public, subject to more supervision, and will certainly consider the market prospect of the product more under pressure. If investors are optimistic about the company's expectations and vision, they will continue to invest. “I think that the main direction for the future should rely on companies including listed companies to develop high-tech and high-end scientific instrument products. The state financial funds should be used to solve key issues such as common technologies."

Chinese scientific instruments need to be more grounded

Instrument companies may be able to obtain capital support, national project support, but the most important thing is to get the support of customers, the main channel is the need for public use, public support, public supervision. Without the participation of the public, it is difficult to get a test of the market. The basis of market testing ultimately requires solving scientific and applied problems. Professor Guo Dongfa pointed out: “Some experts at the time of the academic report mentioned that the development of instruments should be 'indomitable', and in the face of international giants, we are still not able to talk about 'ceiling'; so this stage of domestic instrument research and development is more about 'site'. We must be more 'grounded' to generate more social wealth, create more profits and taxes for the country, bring more benefits to the public, and have more funds for further research and development. The market will be successful."

Do not fight price wars among companies Scientists should provide help for Chinese companies Guo Dongfa’s teacher believes that there must be cooperation between companies, and products that are truly marketed should not be too homogenous, and should not be viciously competitive with price cuts. Only when there is a lot of sales can the price be really cheap.

It is extremely commendable that Mr. Guo Dongfa expressed a profound understanding of the technical progress and funding pressures of home-made mass spectrometry: “If Tianrui can sell hundreds of ICP-MSs in one year, I believe Tianrui’s technological progress will be fast, but There is not enough money to sell, and there is pressure on the funds.” Guo Dongfa’s teacher also sent an initiative to China's scientific research community: “I advocate that scientists should talk about conscience, scientists have so much research, spend so many taxpayer’s money, and publish so many The paper is best able to consciously help domestic manufacturers to translate the results of the research into real productivity. Scientists have to give specific guidance to enterprises, point out where the problems are, and how to improve them. Domestic manufacturers will accept you humbly Opinions, because the technical secrets of foreign companies will not tell us, we need our scientists to help companies to explore together. Everybody knows, but concrete problems will encounter many, many problems, such as mass spectrometry requiring precision machining and assembly. 'The micrometer of the difference, the loss of thousands of miles', among which there are many tips. Scientists must provide valuable technology for enterprises. Support and help, and not always to blame. Of course, companies have to live up to their own, real development on our own. "

State funding should support scientific issues in the actual process. Guo Dongfa’s teacher believes that not only basic research, but also engineering problems include scientific issues. Problems encountered in engineering, such as abstraction, are also scientific issues. Therefore, the use of taxpayers’ national funds must also support the resolution of scientific issues in the actual process. Such as molecular pumps, detectors, mass spectrometry electronics, mass spectrometry software, and so on. In particular, we need a large number of small companies to do everything in their business. Large companies have the ability to bind many small companies to a single benefit chain. “At present, the natural science fund received by the business community is relatively small, and the natural science fund is mainly concentrated in universities and scientific research institutes. We also call for the natural science fund to be able to solve the abstract scientific problems encountered in the development of enterprises in the future. Help.For example, why shale gas development in the United States can succeed is due to a large number of small companies, each doing one thing to support a large industry, and small companies are also one of the sources of technological innovation. Instrument manufacturing must be specialized and share-oriented, and small companies should grow slowly. The same is true for the success of China's IT companies such as Xiaomi."

Three reasons for supporting home-made mass spectrometry instruments An interview with Guo Dongfa teacher told us: “The biggest achievement I have made in the development of ICP-MS applications is the establishment of a number of national standard methods based on foreign ICP-MS instruments, such as marine sedimentation. National standard for ICP-MS methods for marine and marine manganese stones.” However, with the establishment of national standards and methods, Guo Dongfa’s teacher has concerns that these standards are based on foreign instruments. The reliability of the standards cannot be guaranteed in the future. In case of foreign export controls, no The consequences for selling to China are disastrous; while for China’s “nuclear” units, foreign governments have always implemented export controls and set up numerous obstacles. Therefore, considering the national security level, it is very important to develop domestic mass spectrometers.

ICP-MS 2000 produced by Skyray Instruments

Guo Dongfa teacher met with Dr. Liu Zhaogui of Tianrui Instrument in 2007 and hoped that Dr. Liu's company could develop domestic mass spectrometers; in March 2012, Tianrui mass spectrometer was born, and at the end of the year, Guo Dongfa’s laboratory added Tianrui ICP-MS 2000. Mass spectrometer, through actual analysis, Guo Dongfa teacher said: China-made series of mass spectrometer has been able to meet the requirements of nuclear fuel cycle analysis. At the same time, Guo Dongfa’s teacher is also pleased to tell us that Tian Rui’s ICP-MS has been used for third-party testing and will be able to recover its investment in the first half of next year. This is an inspiration to us. If domestic mass spectrometry meets the needs of third-party testing organizations, it will form a benign circulation pattern.

When talking about the future development of China's mass spectrometry, Guo Dongfa’s teacher used the message he concluded in the conference report: “The dawn is ahead of you, and you have a long way to go.” The development prospect of mass spectrometry in China is bright, but the road ahead is twists and turns. of. It is very necessary for China's mass spectrometry company to expand the market for commercial mass spectrometers in China, and we must work hard on the reliability and durability of the instrument, and the quality of the instrument will naturally win the market.

To sum up why domestic mass spectrometry was used, Guo Dongfa gave three reasons:

1) Foreign instruments are very good, but they impose export controls on China's "nuclear" units. Foreign governments have many obstacles;

2) It has been proved through its own practice that China-made series of mass spectrometers can meet the nuclear fuel cycle analysis requirements;

3) Using taxpayer's money, scientists have to talk about conscience.

The Inorganic Mass Spectrometry Conference provided a platform for the participants to talk about the experience of the meeting. Guo Dongfa said: The National Inorganic and Isotope Mass Spectrometry Conference is a very important event organized by the China Mass Spectrometry Society. The number of participants this time exceeded. It is expected that a total of more than 200 participants will participate in the conference. The participants will include top-level research workers and analysts in the field. In the early part of the conference, it was submitted through the Internet and the process has also been optimized. In addition, the conference received strong support from Jiangsu Tianrui Company and provided participants with a platform for mutual exchange. It is a very successful conference for everyone to discuss and exchange academic experiences.

Use the analysis work as a game to play the treasure behind the tapping game. Finally, when it comes to suggestions for the younger generation of analysts working in analytical chemistry, Guo Dongfa’s teacher talks about his own feelings. First, be sure to love you. From the perspective of the industry in which the industry is engaged, the analysis work is very boring. From the perspective of the bottle and jar every day, if you use the analysis process as a game, you will be very interested and will Make achievements. For example, the game of mass spectrometry is the manipulation of ions. The better you play, the higher the level, you can open more doors in the game and discover more treasures." Second, we must realize that analytical chemistry is very important in social life, national economy, and national security. The essence of analytical chemistry is the acquisition of information. Formerly speaking, analytical chemistry was the “eye” of science. Now it can be said that analytical chemistry is like the “five features” of science and helps the brains of scientists from all walks of life to obtain information and make correct judgments. For example, in the medical field, cancers are first detected through analysis and detection, and then measures are taken for treatment. In the field of materials, defects in material materials can be known through analysis techniques, and problems can be identified and reformed afterwards.

Appendix: Guo Dongfa's Biography Guo Dongfa (born in January 1965) graduated from the Department of Analysis of East China Institute of Technology in 1984. He received a master's degree in nuclear geological analysis from the Beijing Institute of Geology in the nuclear industry in 1989 and was awarded the China Institute of Atomic Energy in 2005. Ph.D. in Nuclear Fuel and Material Analysis. He is currently the deputy chief engineer of the Beijing Institute of Geology in the nuclear industry and director of the Analytical Testing Institute, a senior research engineer at the second level, a doctoral supervisor, a leader in analytical testing, and a chief geologist of analytical and test technology projects in the CNG. He also serves as the deputy director of the China Institute of Metrology and Testing, the National Nuclear Energy Standardization Technical Committee, and the National Land Resources Standardization Technical Committee. The main technical experience is as follows: From 1984 to 1986, he worked as an assistant professor at East China Institute of Technology. He mainly engaged in teaching and experimental work of inductively coupled plasma emission spectroscopy; he joined the nuclear industry Beijing Geological Research Institute in 1989 and has served as the project leader and deputy director of the room. , director of the office. Among them, from 2003 to 2005, he served as an IAEA weapons inspection expert. The main technical fields relate to inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy combined with flow injection and hydride generation, alpha & gamma energy spectrum analysis, inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry, particle isotope analysis, laser induced breakdown spectroscopy, and thermal ionization time of flight Mass spectrometry, laser time-of-flight mass spectrometry, standardization of analytical methods, and development of reference materials, etc. The main research objects are tantalum and lanthanoid elements. He has won more than 10 provincial and ministerial-level scientific and technological progress awards, published more than 60 papers, obtained more than 10 patents, and formulated more than 10 standards. Now it is committed to the research and application development of nuclear geological analysis testing technology, pushing the development of domestic mass spectrometry instruments.