Tandem Mass Spectrometry Improves ICP-MS Detection Limits and Accuracy for Trace-Level Analysis of Titanium.

Titanium (Ti) is used in lightweight alloys, catalysts, cutting and grinding tools, and medical implants. Most Ti is refined into the white pigment titanium dioxide (TiO2), used in paint, paper, plastics, food, and consumer products such as toothpaste and sunscreens. TiO2 is considered inert and safe, but TiO2 nanopartides are much more reactive and bioavailable, so they may have adverse effects on human health and the environment. There is a need for analytical techniques and methods for accurate, low level analysis of Ti in environmental samples, biological tissues, and other samples. This application is difficult for conventional quadrupole inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) because of the presence of matrix-based spectral interferences on the isotopes of Ti. In this article, we show how the interferences can be removed using tandem ICP-MS (ICP-MS-MS). This approach allows sub-nanogram-per-liter (part-per-trillion) detection limits to be achieved and ensures that accuracy is maintained in the presence of complex sample matrices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]