Detection And Quantitative Analysis Of Lactose Using Ion Mobility Spectrometry

Detection of trace amounts of a substance is important for many applications ranging from food to aerospace to pharmaceuticals and many more. It is critically important in pharmaceutical manufacturing where very small amounts of any contaminate can result in hundreds of thousands of dollars waste or in the worst case expose the manufacturer to liability.

A typical IMS analysis is done in less than a minute, resulting in a savings of more than a full day over other laboratory methods. Another significant factor in more common analysis techniques is the handling and costs associated with the purchase and disposal of eluting solvents. IMS eliminates all of these elements, saving both time and money.

Current techniques in containment studies utilize aerosolized lactose to determine the integrity of the containment field. The limit of detection (LOD) for lactose using the lactose assay is .002 µg/filter with a limit of quantitation (LOQ) of .01 µg/filter.