Particle size measurements in the submicron range by the differential electromobility technique: comparison of aerosols from thermospray, ultrasonic, pneumatic and frit-type nebulizers

Abstract The differential electromobility technique was used for the comparison of droplet- and particle-size distributions in the 0.02–0.8 μm range for six nebulization systems often used in inductively coupled plasma (ICP) spectrometry: a thermospray nebulizer coupled to a membrane separator (TNMS); two ultrasonic nebulizers (USNs) used with desolvation; one pneumatic nebulizer (PN) used with and without desolvation; and a frit-type nebulizer. In general, volume concentration (volume of droplets or particles per cubic centimeter of injector gas) increased with NaCl concentration, and it was greater for TNMS followed by USNs compared to other nebulizers. For the desolvated aerosol produced by PN and USN, volume concentration was found to be independent of the temperature (140–180°C) of the heating tube for the desolvation device. As the nebulizer tip temperature in thermospray nebulization was varied from 160 to 240°C, a larger volume concentration of desolvated aerosol was produced. Size distributions shifted towards larger particles with increasing NaCl concentration. The implications of these observations in plasma spectrochemical measurements are discussed.