Use of ion mobility spectrometry to determine low levels of impurities in gases

The use of ion mobility spectrometry (IMS) for the determination of trace moisture and oxygen in bulk nitrogen has been explored. IMS utilizes atmospheric pressure ionization to ionize trace impurities in the sample gas. Mobility differences between trace impurity ions are exploited to separate these ions. Our results indicate that an IMS can indeed be used to detect < 1 ppb O2 and H2O in bulk nitrogen. Due to the nature of the interaction between trace moisture and oxygen, a multivariate calibration has to be used to obtain quantitative results, even at levels below 2 ppb.