PROTON-TRANSFER-REACTION MASS-SPECTROMETRY (PTR-MS) - ONLINE MONITORING OF VOLATILE ORGANIC-COMPOUNDS AT PPTV LEVELS

A system for on-line measurements of trace components with concentrati ons as low as a few pptv has been developed on the basis of proton tra nsfer reactions, Medical applications by means of breath analysis allo w the monitoring of metabolic processes in the human body, and example s of food research include investigations of volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions from fruit, coffee and meat. Investigations of VOC em issions from decaying biomatter and on-line monitoring of the diurnal variations of VOCs in ambient air are typical examples of environmenta l applications.