Peculiarities of beryllium atomization in a gasdynamic mass-spectrometric interface

We have studied physical processes involved in electrospray ionization (ESI) mass spectrometry with controlled ion fragmentation and atomization in an IESAP (ion extraction from solutions at atmospheric pressure) source, which lead to the observed shape of mass spectra that can be used for determining trace amounts of beryllium. These mass spectra contain only the peak of beryllium atomic ion at 9 amu in a region that is free of background, which ensures high-sensitivity detection of this element. This mass spectrum is well reproduced in a broad range of beryllium concentrations and conditions of ESI measurements.