Description
Ceramic Outer Tube – D-Torch – 31-808-2815
Part Number:
31-808-2815
Cross Reference(s)
PerkinElmer N0777052
Instrument Compatibility:
PerkinElmer Optima 4300/5300/7300 V
Detail:
Ceramic Outer Tube for D-Torch for PerkinElmer Optima
The ceramic outer tube on a D-Torch has several advantages, including:
- It doesn’t devitrify due to high salts, or fracture when exposed to organic solvents.
- It has a longer lifetime, reducing interruptions and downtime due to torch failure.
- It provides a higher average signal intensity.
- It’s particularly beneficial for the analysis of wear metals in engine oils, where quartz outer tubes often suffer from short lifetimes.
- It’s beneficial for the analysis of high-matrix solutions, such as fusion samples, samples with high-dissolved solids, and samples with high-acid content.
What is the Role of the ICP Torch?
A plasma is an ionized gas, consisting of positively charged ions and free (unbound) electrons. The role of the plasma (ICP) in ICP-MS is to ionize the sample. In contrast to so-called ‘soft’ ionization sources in other forms of mass spectrometry, the ICP is a ‘hard’ ionization technique because it completely atomizes most molecules in the sample.
ICP-MS instruments use an argon plasma, although helium plasma is also an option. Although there are several advantages to using helium, argon is the gas of choice since the cost of helium is prohibitive.
What Makes the Ceramic Outer Tube Work?
Plasma forms at the end of three concentric quartz tubes, collectively known as the torch. Argon gas flows through all three tubes.
- The inner tube is the injector and contains the sample aerosol in a stream of argon that delivers the sample to the plasma.
- Concentric to this tube is another tube of argon. This is the auxiliary gas that forms the plasma.
- The outer argon tube is a cooling layer to prevent the torch from melting.
- The far end of the torch has a copper induction coil (or ‘load coil’) surrounding it that connects to a radio frequency (RF) generator.
How the ICP Torch Ionizes a Sample
The RF generator supplies power to the load coil, creating a high-frequency alternating current. This, in turn, induces a time-varying electromagnetic field in the torch. As a result, with argon gas flowing through the torch, the application of a high-voltage discharge (called a Tesla spark) ionizes a fraction of the argon atoms generating ions and electrons.
The electromagnetic field in the torch then acts on the ions and electrons. As a result, they accelerate and collide with other argon atoms. If these collisions impart enough energy, additional atoms ionize creating electrons and ions that propagate the cascade.
As a result, the movement of electrons and ions in the torch generates tremendous heat. The result is an ICP, which reaches a temperature of up to 10,000 Kelvin (hotter than the surface of the sun).
What Is PFA Inert?
PFA is frequently employed as an inert substance in sample equipment on geochemical or environmental analytical chemistry field sites to assist in avoiding trace amounts of metallic ion contamination.
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