Detection of microcystins using electrospray ionization high-field asymmetric waveform ion mobility mass spectrometry/mass spectrometry

Differential Mobility Spectrometry for Improved Selectivity in Hydrophilic Interaction Liquid Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry Analysis of Paralytic Shellfish Toxins

Paralytic shellfish toxins (PSTs) are neurotoxins produced by dinoflagellates and cyanobacteria that cause paralytic shellfish poisoning in humans. PST quantitation by LC-MS is challenging because of their high polarity, lability as gas-phase ions, and large number of potentially interfering analogues. Differential mobility spectrometry (DMS) has the potential to improve the performance of LC-MS methods for PSTs in terms of selectivity and limits of detection. This work describes a comprehensive investigation of the separation of 16 regulated PSTs by DMS and the development of highly selective LC-DMS-MS methods for PST quantitation. The effects of all DMS parameters on the separation of PSTs from one another were first investigated in detail. The labile nature of 11α-gonyautoxin epimers gave unique insight into fragmentation of labile analytes before, during, and after the DMS analyzer. Two sets of DMS parameters were identified that either optimized the resolution of PSTs from one another or transmitted them at a limited number of compensation voltage (CV) values corresponding to structural subclasses. These were used to develop multidimensional LC-DMS-MS/MS methods using existing HILIC-MS/MS parameters. In both cases, improved selectivity was observed when using DMS, and the quantitative capabilities of a rapid UPLC-DMS-MS/MS method were evaluated. Limits of detection of the developed method were similar to those without DMS, and differences were highly analyte-dependant. Analysis of shellfish matrix reference materials showed good agreement with established methods. The developed methods will be useful in cases where specific matrix interferences are encountered in the LC-MS/MS analysis of PSTs in complex biological samples. Graphical Abstract ᅟ.

To What Extent is FAIMS Beneficial in the Analysis of Proteins?

High field asymmetric waveform ion mobility spectrometry (FAIMS), also known as differential ion mobility spectrometry, is emerging as a tool for biomolecular analysis. In this article, the benefits and limitations of FAIMS for protein analysis are discussed. The principles and mechanisms of FAIMS separation of ions are described, and the differences between FAIMS and conventional ion mobility spectrometry are detailed. Protein analysis is considered from both the top-down (intact proteins) and the bottom-up (proteolytic peptides) perspective. The roles of FAIMS in the analysis of complex mixtures of multiple intact proteins and in the analysis of multiple conformers of a single protein are assessed. Similarly, the application of FAIMS in proteomics and targeted analysis of peptides are considered.

Improving FAIMS sensitivity using a planar geometry with slit interfaces

Differential mobility spectrometry or field asymmetric waveform ion mobility spectrometry (FAIMS) is gaining broad acceptance for analyses of gas-phase ions, especially in conjunction with largely orthogonal separation methods such as mass spectrometry (MS) and/or conventional (drift tube) ion mobility spectrometry. In FAIMS, ions are filtered while passing through a gap between two electrodes that may have planar or curved (in particular, cylindrical) geometry. Despite substantial inherent advantages of the planar configuration and its near-universal adoption in current stand-alone FAIMS devices, commercial FAIMS/MS systems have employed curved FAIMS geometries that can be more effectively interfaced to MS. Here we report a new planar (p-) FAIMS design with slit-shaped entrance and exit apertures that substantially increase ion transmission in and out of the analyzer. The entrance slit interface effectively couples p-FAIMS to multi-emitter electrospray ionization (ESI) sources, improving greatly the ion current introduced to the device and allowing liquid flow rates up to approximately 50 microL/min. The exit slit interface increases the transmission of ribbon-shaped ion beams output by the p-FAIMS to downstream stages such as a MS. Overall, the ion signal in ESI/FAIMS/MS analyses increases by over an order of magnitude without affecting FAIMS resolution.

Application of effective potential approach to ion dynamics investigation in field asymmetric ion mobility spectrometry conditions

The theory of ion motion in field asymmetric ion mobility spectrometry (FAIMS) conditions has been developed on the bases of an effective field approach and applied to cylindrical and spherical geometries of FAIMS analyzers. The resulting analytical formulae relate compensation voltage to ion characteristics such as non-linear ion mobility coefficient, ion mobility and ion mass and charge. They permit taking into account ion inertia at small pressure of a buffer gas and at high ion mass.

Review of applications of high-field asymmetric waveform ion mobility spectrometry (FAIMS) and differential mobility spectrometry (DMS)

High-Field Asymmetric Waveform Ion Mobility Spectrometry (FAIMS) and Differential Mobility Spectrometry (DMS) harness differences in ion mobility in low and high electric fields to achieve a gas-phase separation of ions at atmospheric pressure. This separation is orthogonal to either chromatographic or mass spectrometric separation, thereby increasing the selectivity and specificity of analysis. The orthogonality of separation, which in some cases may obviate chromatographic separation, can be used to differentiate isomers, to reduce background, to resolve isobaric species, and to improve signal-to-noise ratios by selective ion transmission. This review will focus on the applications of these techniques to the separation of various classes of analytes, including chemical weapons, explosives, biologically active molecules, pharmaceuticals and pollutants. These papers cover the period up to January 2007.

High-resolution field asymmetric waveform ion mobility spectrometry using new planar geometry analyzers

Field asymmetric waveform ion mobility spectrometry (FAIMS) has emerged as a powerful tool of broad utility for separation and characterization of gas-phase ions, especially in conjunction with mass spectrometry (MS). In FAIMS, ions are filtered by the dependence of mobility on electric field while being carried by gas flow through the analytical gap between two electrodes of either planar (p-) or cylindrical (c-) geometry. Most FAIMS/MS systems employ c-FAIMS because of its ease of coupling to MS, yet the merits of the two geometries have not been compared in detail. Here, a priori simulations reveal that reducing the FAIMS curvature always improves resolution at equal sensitivity. In particular, the resolving power of p-FAIMS exceeds that of c-FAIMS, typically by a factor of 2-4 depending on the ion species and carrier gas. We have constructed a new planar FAIMS incorporating a curtain plate interface for effective operation with an ESI ion source and joined to an MS using an ion funnel interface with a novel slit aperture. The resolution increases up to 4-fold over existing c-FAIMS, even though the analysis is approximately 2 times faster. This allows separation of species not feasible in previous FAIMS studies, e.g., protonated leucine and isoleucine or new bradykinin isomers. The improvement for protein conformers (of ubiquitin) is less significant, possibly because of multiple unresolved geometries.

High-field asymmetric waveform ion mobility spectrometry coupled with liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (LC/ESI-FAIMS-MS/MS) multi-component bioanalytical method development, performance evaluation and demonstration of the constancy of the compensation voltage with change of mobile phase composition or flow rate

The feasibility of developing a multi-component bioanalytical method using high-field asymmetric waveform ion mobility spectrometry coupled with liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (LC/ESI-FAIMS-MS/MS) is demonstrated using nefazodone and its two metabolites as model compounds. The performance of the bioanalytical method for the three analytes, with three different compensation voltage (CV) values, is assessed using standard curves and quality control samples, which exhibited good accuracy, precision and ruggedness. The number of analytes with different CV values that can be quantitated simultaneously depends on the acquisition cycle time, which is a function of the FAIMS residence time (fixed), chromatographic peak width and selected reaction monitoring (SRM) dwell time. It is established that CV, the FAIMS selectivity parameter, is reproducible for at least 16 h, thus ensuring the constancy of the CV during a large-batch sample analysis. It is also established that change in mobile phase composition or of flow rate does not cause a shift in CV. Thus, CV values determined from a CV scan via infusion of a sample can be used for an LC/ESI-FAIMS-M/MS method based on isocratic or gradient elution.

Field Asymmetric Waveform Ion Mobility Spectrometry Studies of Proteins: Dipole Alignment in Ion Mobility Spectrometry?

Approaches to separation and characterization of ions based on their mobilities in gases date back to the 1960s. Conventional ion mobility spectrometry (IMS) measures the absolute mobility, and field asymmetric waveform IMS (FAIMS) exploits the difference between mobilities at high and low electric fields. However, in all previous IMS and FAIMS experiments ions experienced an essentially free rotation; thus the separation was based on the orientationally averaged cross-sections Omega(avg) between ions and buffer gas molecules. Virtually all large ions are permanent electric dipoles that will be oriented by a sufficiently strong electric field. Under typical FAIMS conditions this will occur for dipole moments >400 D, found for many macroions including most proteins above approximately 30 kDa. Mobilities of aligned dipoles depend on directional cross-sections Omega(dir) (rather than Omega(avg)), which should have a major effect on FAIMS separation parameters. Here we report the FAIMS behavior of electrospray-ionization-generated ions for 10 proteins up to approximately 70 kDa. Those above 29 kDa exhibit a strong increase of mobility at high field, which is consistent with predicted ion dipole alignment. This effect expands the useful FAIMS separation power by an order of magnitude, allowing separation of up to approximately 10(2) distinct protein conformers and potentially revealing information about Omega(dir) and ion dipole moment that is of utility for structural characterization. Possible approaches to extending dipole alignment to smaller ions are discussed.

Simplified enrichment and identification of environmental peptide toxins using antibody-capture surfaces with subsequent mass spectrometry detection

The development of a simplified assay for detection of congeners of the microcystin (MC) hepatotoxin is described that combines the extreme sensitivity of surface-enhanced laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight MS (SELDI TOF-MS) with the superior selectivity of immunoaffinity interactions. Using methods similar to those of conventional immunoassays, MC standards were captured and enriched on immunoreactive ProteinChips coated with an MC-antibody and analyzed by TOF-MS. Unlike with conventional immunoassays, individual congeners were resolved from mixed pools. Assay conditions were optimized for the quantification of MC from untreated raw pond water at concentrations as low as 0.025 microg L(-1), well below the public health relevant guideline of 1 microg L(-1).

Structural Identification of Highly Polar Nontarget Contaminants in Drinking Water by ESI-FAIMS-Q-TOF-MS

Drinking water is a complex mixture that contains thousands of naturally occurring and anthropogenic contaminants. Liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) methods have gained a tremendous popularity in monitoring nonvolatile, highly polar, and thermally labile components in drinking water. It is well recognized, however, that there are difficulties or limitations of LC-MS methods associated with (1) significant resources (time and effort) involved in sample preparation (preconcentration, fractionation, separation), (2) low screening capacity for target contaminants, and (3) insufficient capabilities for structural identification (elucidation) of nontarget contaminants. Consequently, LC-MS methods are mainly used for the detection of target contaminants (compounds identified in drinking water before), seldom for the structural identification of abundant nontarget pollutants (unidentified pollutants in drinking water), and almost never for the structural identification of nontarget components at a trace level. The paper presents a new method of electrospray ionization high field asymmetric waveform ion mobility spectrometry mass spectrometry (ESI-FAIMS-MS), which can detect a large number of water pollutants in a quick and convenient fashion without preconcentration, fractionation, derivatization, or column separation. Most importantly, the method provides structural identification of nontarget contaminants including species present in drinking water at a sub-parts-per-billion concentration level. The identification of previously unknown contaminants was based on mass measurements of investigated ions and their fragments in mass and tandem mass spectrometry. Elemental compositions of these ions, determined by mass measurements, were used to link dissociation patterns of investigated species with their chemical structures. Characterization of nontarget contaminants of chlorine-treated drinking water by ESI-FAIMS-MS has revealed many previously unknown disinfection byproducts. The most intriguing compound, from a group of highly polar hydroxycarboxylic acids discovered in the study, was the most abundant component of drinking water, glycolic acid. Glycolic acid (toxic to kidneys and associated with a moderate maternal toxicity) has never been considered as a drinking water contaminant, despite the fact that it is present in drinking water at a higher concentration (high ppm) than concentrations of highly polar water pollutants that had attracted most attention in the past. The process of structural elucidation of discovered pollutants, including ultratrace contaminants representing a variety of carboxylic acids, will be presented in detail. The structural identification of highly polar contaminants in drinking water presented in the paper is rarely reported in the literature. The key experimental feature of the ESI-FAIMS-MS method is FAIMS separation, which significantly improves the identification capabilities of mass spectrometry.

FAIMS operation for realistic gas flow profile and asymmetric waveforms including electronic noise and ripple

The use of field asymmetric waveform ion mobility spectrometry (FAIMS) has rapidly grown with the advent of commercial FAIMS systems coupled to mass spectrometry. However, many fundamental aspects of FAIMS remain obscure, hindering its technological improvement and expansion of analytical utility. Recently, we developed a comprehensive numerical simulation approach to FAIMS that can handle any device geometry and operating conditions. The formalism was originally set up in one dimension for a uniform gas flow and limited to ideal asymmetric voltage waveforms. Here we extend the model to account for a realistic gas flow velocity distribution in the analytical gap, axial ion diffusion, and waveform imperfections (e.g., noise and ripple). The nonuniformity of the gas flow velocity profile has only a minor effect, slightly improving resolution. Waveform perturbations are significant even at very low levels, in some cases approximately 0.01% of the nominal voltage. These perturbations always improve resolution and decrease sensitivity, a trade-off controllable by variation of noise or ripple amplitude. This trade-off is physically inferior to that obtained by adjusting the gap width and/or asymmetric waveform frequency. However, the disadvantage is negligible when the perturbation period is much shorter than the residence time in FAIMS, and ripple adjustment appears to offer a practical method for modifying FAIMS resolution.

A review of the occurrence, analyses, toxicity, and biodegradation of naphthenic acids

Naphthenic acids occur naturally in crude oils and in oil sands bitumens. They are toxic components in refinery wastewaters and in oil sands extraction waters. In addition, there are many industrial uses for naphthenic acids, so there is a potential for their release to the environment from a variety of activities. Studies have shown that naphthenic acids are susceptible to biodegradation, which decreases their concentration and reduces toxicity. This is a complex group of carboxylic acids with the general formula CnH(2n+Z)O2, where n indicates the carbon number and Z specifies the hydrogen deficiency resulting from ring formation. Measuring the concentrations of naphthenic acids in environmental samples and determining the chemical composition of a naphthenic acids mixture are huge analytical challenges. However, new analytical methods are being applied to these problems and progress is being made to better understand this mixture of chemically similar compounds. This paper reviews a variety of analytical methods and their application to assessing biodegradation of naphthenic acids.

Determination of microcystins in biological samples by matrix solid-phase dispersion and liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry

A method for the detection and quantification of the microcystins (MCs)-MC-LR, MC-RR and MC-YR-in biological samples by matrix solid-phase dispersion (MSPD) has been developed. The optimum extraction conditions were 500 mg of liver or kidney, C18 bonded silica as dispersant, and a mixture methanol-water (70:30) as eluent. The MCs were determined by liquid chromatography electrospray mass spectrometry (LC/ES/MS). Recoveries of biological extracts at three different spiked levels (1-10 mg kg(-1)) ranged from 40.5 to 87.0% in liver, and from 52.5 to 74.5 in kidney. R.S.D.s were < 15.6% and < 10.6%, respectively. The detection and quantification limits were 0.05 and 0.5 mg kg(-1), for all MCs. The method was applied to MCs detection in liver and kidney of rat previously injected i.p. with MC-LR. Results showed the presence of MC-LR in the liver of the animals injected with the highest dose.

Understanding and designing field asymmetric waveform ion mobility spectrometry separations in gas mixtures

Field asymmetric waveform ion mobility spectrometry (FAIMS) has significant potential for post-ionization separations in conjunction with MS analyses. FAIMS fractionates ion mixtures by exploiting the fact that ion mobilities in gases depend on the electric field in a manner specific to each ion. Nearly all previous work has used pure gases, for which FAIMS fundamentals are understood reasonably well; however, unexpected phenomena observed in some gas mixtures (e.g., N(2)/CO(2)) but not in others (N(2)/O(2)) remain unexplained. Here, we introduce and experimentally test a universal model for FAIMS separations in mixtures, derived from formalisms that determine high-field mobilities in heteromolecular gases. Overall, the theoretical findings are consistent with data for N(2)/CO(2) (although quantitative discrepancies remain), while results for N(2)/O(2) fit Blanc's law, in agreement with measurements. Calculations for He/N(2) and He/CO(2) are also consistent with observations and suggest why adding He to the working gas generally enhances FAIMS performance. As predicted, mixtures of gases with extremely disparate molecular masses and collision cross sections, such as He/SF(6), exhibit spectacular non-Blanc effects, which greatly improve the resolution and peak capacity of technique. Understanding FAIMS operation in gas mixtures is expected to enable the rational design of media for both targeted and global analyses.

Optimization of the design and operation of FAIMS analyzers

Field asymmetric waveform ion mobility spectrometry (FAIMS) holds significant promise for post-ionization separations in conjunction with mass-spectrometric analyses. However, a limited understanding of fundamentals of FAIMS analyzers has made their design and operation largely an empirical exercise. Recently, we developed an a priori simulation of FAIMS that accounts for both ion diffusion (including anisotropic components) and Coulomb repulsion, and validated it by extensive comparisons with FAIMS/MS data. Here it is corroborated further by FAIMS-only measurements, and applied to explore how key instrumental parameters (analytical gap width and length, waveform frequency and profile, the identity and flow speed of buffer gas) affect FAIMS response. We find that the trade-off between resolution and sensitivity can be managed by varying gap width, RF frequency, and (in certain cases) buffer gas, with equivalent outcome. In particular, the resolving power can be approximately doubled compared to "typical" conditions. Throughput may be increased by either accelerating the gas flow (preferable) or shortening the device, but below certain minimum residence times performance deteriorates. Bisinusoidal and clipped-sinusoidal waveforms have comparable merit, but switching to rectangular waveforms would improve resolution and/or sensitivity. For any waveform profile, the ratio of two between voltages in high and low portions of the cycle produces the best performance.

Determination of microcystins in natural blooms and cyanobacterial strain cultures by matrix solid-phase dispersion and liquid chromatography?mass spectrometry

An analytical procedure based on matrix solid-phase dispersion (MSPD) and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) was developed for determining three microcystins (MCs) in natural water blooms and cyanobacteria strain cultures. The procedure involves sample homogenization with C(18), washed with dichloromethane to eliminate interfering compounds, and elution with acidic methanol. Results were compared to those achieved by using an organic solvent standard method. Mean recoveries of MCs with MSPD were 85-92% with intra-day relative standard deviation (RSDs) of 9-19%, whereas organic solvent extraction resulted in recovery rates of 92-105% with intra-day RSDs ranging from 8 to 18%. Limits of quantification (LOQs) were 1 microg g(-1) dry weight for the MCs either by MSPD or organic solvent extraction. The two analytical methods tested were specific and sensitive to the extraction of MCs and were applied to the detection of MCs in water blooms and culture strains. The concentration of MCs varied from 7 to 3,330 microg g(-1) of lyophilized cells with MC-LR always showing the highest concentration. MCs levels were higher in culture strains than in water blooms, except for MC-LR, whose concentration in blooms was slightly superior to that determined in culture strains.

Plant proteome analysis by mass spectrometry: principles, problems, pitfalls and recent developments

The genome of several species has now been elucidated; these genomes indicate the proteomic potential of the cell. While identification of genomes has been, and continues to be, a technically and intellectually demanding process, the identification of the proteome contains inherently greater difficulties. The proteome of each living cell is dynamic, altering in response to the individual cell's metabolic state and reception of intracellular and extracellular signal molecules, and many of the proteins which are expressed will be post-translationally altered. Thus if the purpose of the proteome analysis is to aid the understanding of protein function and interaction, then it is identification of the proteins in their final state which is required: for this mass spectrometric identification of individual proteins, indicating site and nature of modifications, is essential. Here we review the principles of the methodologies involved in such analyses, give some indication of current achievements in plant proteomics, and indicate imminent and prospective technical developments.

Separation of Cisplatin and Its Hydrolysis Products Using Electrospray Ionization High-Field Asymmetric Waveform Ion Mobility Spectrometry Coupled with Ion Trap Mass Spectrometry

Cisplatin and its mono- and dihydrated complexes have been separated using a high-field asymmetric waveform ion mobility spectrometry (FAIMS) analyzer interfaced with electrospray ionization (ESI) and ion trap mass spectrometry (ITMS). The addition of helium to the nitrogen curtain/carrier gas in the FAIMS device improved both the sensitivity and selectivity of the electrospray analysis. Introduction of a three-component mixture as curtain/carrier gas, nitrogen, helium, and carbon dioxide, resulted in further improvements to sensitivity. Compared with conventional ESI-MS, the background chemical noise in the ESI-FAIMS-ITMS spectrum was dramatically reduced, resulting in over 30-fold improvement in the signal-to-noise ratio for cisplatin. Analytical results were linear over the concentration range 10-200 ng/mL for intact cisplatin with a corresponding detection limit determined of 0.7 ng/mL with no derivatization or chromatographic separation prior to analysis.

Atmospheric pressure ion trapping in a tandem FAIMS-FAIMS coupled to a TOFMS: studies with electrospray generated gramicidin S ions

A tandem FAIMS-FAIMS system for ion trapping at room temperature and atmospheric pressure is described. The first FAIMS device consisted of a side-to-side configuration (sFAIMS) suitable for ion separation, whereas the second FAIMS device was appropriate for ion trapping (tFAIMS). Ions pre-selected by the sFAIMS entered the tFAIMS and were captured by virtual trapping fields at the hemispherical tip of the inner electrode. The use of the sFAIMS, with wider electrode diameters, and consequently better ion separation efficiency than the tFAIMS, lowered the number of background ions captured in the trapping region of tFAIMS, and thus reduced the space charge effects in the trap. This tandem device was coupled to a laboratory built time-of-flight mass spectrometer and was evaluated using the electrospray generated [M + 2H]2+ ion of gramicidin S. The half-time (t1/2) of the exponential decay of the ion cloud in tFAIMS, determined by monitoring the residual intensity of ions extracted from the ion trapping region of tFAIMS after various delay times, was about 2 s.

Miniature radio-frequency mobility analyzer as a gas chromatographic detector for oxygen-containing volatile organic compounds, pheromones and other insect attractants

A high electric field, radio-frequency ion mobility spectrometry (RF-IMS) analyzer was used as a small detector in gas chromatographic separations of mixtures of volatile organic compounds including alcohols, aldehydes, esters, ethers, pheromones, and other chemical attractants for insects. The detector was equipped with a 2 mCi 63Ni ion source and the drift region for ion characterization was 5 mm wide, 15 mm long and 0.5 mm high. The rate of scanning for the compensation voltages was 60 V s(-1) and permitted four to six scans to be obtained across a capillary chromatographic elution profile for each component. The RF-IMS scans were characteristic of a compound and provided a second dimension of chemical identity to chromatographic retention adding specificity in instances of co-elution. Limits of detection were 1.6-55 x 10(-11) g with an average detection limit for all chemicals of 9.4 x 10(-11) g. Response to mass was linear from 2-50 x 10(-10) g with an average sensitivity of 4 pA ng(-1). Separations of pheromones and chemical attractants for insects illustrated the distinct patterns obtained from gas chromatography with RF-IMS scans in real time and suggest an analytical utility of the RF-IMS as a small, advanced detector for on-site gas chromatographs.

Evaluation of carrier gases for use in high-field asymmetric waveform ion mobility spectrometry

Effects of carrier gas type (N2, O2, CO2, N2O, and SF6) on changes in the ratio of high- to low-field ion mobility, Kh/K, of cesium, gramicidin S, tetrahexylammonium, heptadecanoic acid, and aspartic acid in fields of up to 67 Td are presented. The theory of the mobility of ions at high E/N in different gases is discussed. Plots of Kh/K as a function of the ionic energy parameter, E/N, for the five ions in each of the gases were derived from experimental data collected using a high-field asymmetric waveform ion mobility spectrometer. The change in the ratio of high- to low-field ion mobility of cesium in carrier gases of O2 and N2 showed excellent agreement with literature values. The behavior of cesium in O2 and N2 is used to illustrate that the ratio Kh/K as a function of effective temperature is invariant with gas type as long as the well depth of the interaction potential significantly exceeds thermal energy. From these results, it appears that the well depth of the interaction potential of the heavier ions studied here, including gramicidin S, tetrahexylammonium, and heptadecanoic acid, with bath gases such as N2 and O2, is shallow relative to thermal energy.

Detection of nine chlorinated and brominated haloacetic acids at part-per-trillion levels using ESI-FAIMS-MS

A combination of electrospray ionization, high-field asymmetric waveform ion mobility spectrometry, and mass spectrometry (ESI-FAIMS-MS) was used for the analysis of a solution containing a mixture of the nine chlorinated and brominated haloacetic acids. For a carrier gas of nitrogen in the FAIMS analyzer, haloacetate anions of the mono- and dihalogenated acids and the decarboxylated anions of three of the trihalogenated acids were detected. No signal was observed for bromodichloroacetic acid (BDCAA) at a dispersion voltage of -3400 V. The addition of a small amount of carbon dioxide to the nitrogen carrier gas resulted in the detection of the pseudomolecular trihaloacetate anions, including BDCA-, and significant increases in sensitivities for the trihalogenated species. The addition of carbon dioxide to the nitrogen carrier gas had little effect on the mono- and dihalogenated anions. Quantitative analysis of the nine haloacetic acids, using flow injection, gave detection limits between 5 and 36 parts-per-trillion in 9/1 methanol/water (v/v) containing 0.2 mM ammonium acetate.