Application of ionic liquid matrices in spectral analysis of poly(lactide) - solid state NMR spectroscopy versus matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight (MALDI-TOF) mass spectrometry

The work presented here shows the complementarity of Solid State NMR (SS NMR) spectroscopy and Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption/Ionization-time-of-flight (MALDI-TOF) mass spectrometry in spectral analysis of poly(L-lactide) (PLLA) using second-generation ionic liquid matrices (ILM II) prepared from N,N-diisopropylethylamine (DEA) and DHB (2,5-dihydroxybenzoic acid), IAA (3-indoleacrylic acid), and HABA (2-(4-hydroxyphenylazo) benzoic acid). The 13C cross-polarization (CP) magic angle spinning (CP/MAS) SS NMR technique was used to study the structure of ionic liquid matrices, their thermal stability, and the influence of ILM on the morphology of polymer. A comparison of MALDI-TOF spectra for samples prepared employing the dried droplet (DD) and the solvent free (SF) mode showed that the former approach gave better results (signal to noise ratio) very likely due to intimate contact between analyte and matrix domains. This hypothesis was verified by analysis of CP build-up curves for DHB–DEA–PLLA samples prepared employing both methods. We also showed that an alternative method of sample preparation based on the melting of ILM II together with a suspended polymer in the liquid matrix is unsatisfactory, particularly for those matrices which can undergo isomerization at higher temperatures (e.g., HABA–DEA and IAA–DEA).