Mass spectrometry
Mass spectrometry is a universal principle for detection of compounds based on molecular weight and structure. With mass spectrometry, it is possible to identify and quantify compounds with a high degree of certainty and a high sensitivity. For this reason, mass spectrometry internationally has become a “gold standard” within several fields of analytical chemistry, from biological research to forensic analyses.
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The mass spectrometric (MS) laboratory at Department of Biotechnology, SINTEF / Department of Biotechnology, NTNU represents state-of-art of MS instrumentation. The MS platform consists of gas chromatographic instrumentation (GC-MS), ideally suited for a wide range of compounds that can be identified on the basis of their unique mass spectra. For polar compounds, like metabolites, liquid chromatographic (LC-MS) is the instrumentation ideally suited and is used complementary to GC-MS.
The laboratory comprises both low-resolution mass spectrometers, which are ideal “workhorses” for high throughput screening analyses, and high-resolution instruments for elucidation of molecular structures. MS generally offers a very high analytical sensitivity which enables detection of extremely low concentrations (nanomolar/ppt levels), with high specificity (ensuring identity). |
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Our analytical research has been within the fields of bioprospecting, biofuel, fermentation technology, food microbiology / technology, high throughput screening, metabolomics (metabolic profiling and metabolic fingerprinting), oil microbiology, process development, strain development, systems biology and CO2 capture.
Our instrument platform is:
The laboratory has established collaboration on research-based analyses with partners from national and international research institutions and the industry.
