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ARS Home » Northeast Area » Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania » Eastern Regional Research Center » Microbial and Chemical Food Safety » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #385569

Research Project: Technology Development, Evaluation and Validation for the Detection and Characterization of Chemical Contaminants in Foods

Location: Microbial and Chemical Food Safety

Title: The (Long and Winding) Road to LPGC-MS

Author
item DE ZEEUW, JAAP - Restek Corporation (UNITED STATES)
item HANS-GERD, JANSSEN - Unilever
item Lehotay, Steven

Submitted to: The Analytical Scientist
Publication Type: Trade Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 11/6/2019
Publication Date: 6/24/2021
Citation: De Zeeuw, J., Hans-Gerd, J., Lehotay, S.J. 2021. The (Long and Winding) Road to LPGC-MS. The Analytical Scientist. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chroma.2019.460691.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chroma.2019.460691

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: LPGC, when coupled to MS, is a fast and robust alternative to traditional GC-MS – but the concept of LPGC is not new; in fact, the low-pressure route towards faster GC has been known to analytical chemists since the 1960s. However, several challenges have stood in the way of its widespread adoption. In 2000, Jaap de Zeeuw injected (no pun intended) new life into LPGC with a simple solution – a restrictor that maintained positive inlet pressure for a wide-bore column. Advocates of the technique have had to navigate a long and winding road fraught with obstacles, including technical challenges, commercial pressures, and dismissiveness from the analytical community. Today, LPGC-MS is accessible to all via a commercialized kit. Here, three trailblazers on LPGC’s journey – Jaap de Zeeuw, Hans-Gerd Janssen, and Steve Lehotay – share how the technique managed to persevere and discuss where it might go next.