Tips for LC and LC/MS Analysis (Vial Selection): User's Voice
Use cases for Shim-vial
Food Safety
When analyzing pesticide residues in food, it is common to encounter analytes that are prone to adsorption onto glass and polypropylene vials, particularly basic or highly hydrophobic compounds. In such cases, Shim-vial offers reliable analytical performance due to its low adsorption characteristics.
Customers working on food analysis chose Shim-vial for its low adsorption performance to minimize adsorption to vials.
In a specific example, they told us about a case where the use of Shim-vial made it possible to detect compounds peaks that had previously been unable to detect, and a case where the recovery rate of samples dispensed into Shim-vial was stable compared to other vials when samples were re-analyzed.
We also received feedback that the certificate provided with the vials gave customers reassurance about their analysis and became a key factor in vial selection.
PFAS
When analyzing analytes in water samples, there are cases where customers face significant adsorption to vials due to the absence of coexisting contaminants such as food and biological samples. There has also been a request to analyze samples directly in their aqueous state whenever possible. Against this background, Shim-vial H glass, which exhibits low adsorption, has attracted attention for PFAS analysis in aqueous samples.
Customers who have been involved in the analysis of PFAS using Shim-vial have cited the advantages of low adsorption effects, as well as good quantitation accuracy and linearity at low concentrations. Customers also appreciated the lineup of PTFE-free septa, which does not affect PFAS analysis.
Pharmaceutical Industry
When samples are particularly expensive and valuable, ensuring stability after sample preparation is important in terms of cost and efficiency.
One pharmaceutical customer often uses expensive reagents and keeps prepared samples refrigerated for long periods of time. Ensuring stability during storage is therefore indispensable, and to address adsorption concerns they store their reagents in Shim‑vials. Shim-vial provides excellent adsorption inhibition over a long period of time, reducing the amount of reagent repreparation and verification work, leading to improved work efficiency.
In addition, in LC/MS analysis, some of the target compounds are often detected as Na⁺ adducts, which may affect the sensitivity of the original m/z (H adduct) to be detected, but we have received feedback that Shim-vial exhibit this phenomenon less frequently.
Since Shim-vial is treated with a special low-alkali treatment, it is expected to not only suppress adsorption, but also reduce the detection of Na⁺ adducts because the influence of metal ions derived from vials is low.
