Coupling of open tubular liquid chromatography to electrospray mass spectrometry with a nanospray interface

The concept of interfacing open tubular liquid chromatography (OTLC) to ele ctrospray ionization mass spectroscopy (ESI-MS) is here introduced. This co mbination has the potential of becoming a powerful and generic tool for sep aration and quantification of various complex mixtures, We can demonstrate here how easy and straightforward it is to connect an open capillary LC col umn to nano-ESI, simply by drawing the column through a stainless steel tub e onto which the high voltage (HV) is supplied. This method is compared wit h applying the HV to a gold-coated column tip and the standard dynamic nano spray interface supplied by the ESI-MS manufacturer. Reliability and stabil ity are documented. OTLC-ESI-MS is demonstrated by separation of fatty acid s in the negative mode.