ENHANCEMENT OF ELECTRON-CAPTURE DETECTOR SENSITIVITY TO NONELECTRON ATTACHING COMPOUNDS BY ADDITION OF NITROUS-OXIDE TO THE CARRIER GAS

The sensitivity of a variety of compounds in an electron capture (EC) detector is enhanced by the addition of N2O to the carrier gas. The mechanism for this enhancement derives from the low pressure steady-state negative ion chemistry of N2O in a N2 carrier gas, [formula omitted] in which electrons are attached, Reaction 1, and released, Reaction 3. A reaction that converts O- to nonreacting negative ions interrupts the sequence given by Reactions 1-3 and results in electron loss from the EC detector plasma and a corresponding selective sensitization of the detector to compounds that do not normally produce a strong response. This effect is demonstrated for CO2, H2, and CH4. © 1979, American Chemical Society. All rights reserved.