Comprehensive Analysis of Nanoparticles using Single and Triple Quadrupole ICP-MS and a Dedicated Data Evaluation Tool

The goal of this work is to demonstrate the possibility of directly determining the size distribution and particle number concentration of different nanoparticles using ICP-MS operated in the so-called single particle mode. Different nanoparticles (e.g. made from gold or titanium dioxide) were analyzed using either single quadrupole ICP-MS or triple quadrupole ICP-MS. All parameters relevant for the measurement were determined automatically using a dedicated software module, the npQuant plug-in for the Thermo Scientific (TM) Qtegra (TM) Intelligent Scientific Data Solution software. To show the validity of the results, a dataset acquired using the npQuant plug-in was exported and evaluated in an independent, publically available software solution. Excellent agreement with certified values was achieved. A comparison of the results obtained by the npQuant plug-in to a widely accepted spreadsheet solution also showed identical results. For TiO2 particles, low detection limits (in terms of lowest detectable particle size) were achieved using triple quadrupole based ICP-MS.