Is there a document or a procedure that Agilent uses to assess the performance of a 5977C MS? Specifically looking for performance and sensitivity criteria for the tuning calibrant.
Is there a document or a procedure that Agilent uses to assess the performance of a 5977C MS? Specifically looking for performance and sensitivity criteria for the tuning calibrant.
At installation, either the Instrument Detection Limit (IDL) or Signal to Noise (SN) tests were performed. IDL if an automatic liquid sampler was also purchased and SN if one wasn't. These tests prove the instrument meets the factory specifications.
The automatic tuning algorithms - autotune, standard spectrum tune, extractor ion source tune, High Efficiency Source tune, etc - adjust voltages and currents on the pieces of the ion source, quadrupole, and detector so that the final result falls within some quite generously wide windows of allowable tuning. Tuning is NOT like working really hard to get the system exactly perfectly on the only-seen-by-electron-microscope tip of a needle and can fall off instantly all the way down into the crevasse of poor system response. Tuning is making sure that the system is somewhere in large range of acceptable functionality. If a system passes tune – in nearly all cases, it’s working more than sufficiently fine for nearly all applications.
See: Don't Tune So Often ! and the manuals shipped with the instrument are also available online: (+) Collection of 5977 GC/MSD Resources - Wiki - GC/MS - Agilent Community
If you are using autotune, there is a Tune Evaluation in the software that will give a report like this one:
Tune Evaluation was written assuming 1.2 ml/min of helium carrier gas, ATUNE, 230°C ion source, 150° C quad, and a system that has been on pumping for at least some hours and is fully stable.
You could also run these tests:(+) Proving that an Agilent GC/MS system is fully functional - Files - GC/MS - Agilent Community
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