Ci Maintenance; To Clean The Ci Ion Source - Agilent Technologies 5975C TAD VL MSD Troubleshooting And Maintenance Manual

5

CI Maintenance

To Clean the CI Ion Source

The CI ion source has slightly different cleaning requirements than the EI ion
source. See the video clip in the 5975 Series MSD User Information DVD.
Frequency of cleaning
Because the CI ion source operates at much higher pressures than the EI ion
source, it will probably require more frequent cleaning than the EI ion source.
Cleaning of the source is not a scheduled maintenance procedure. The source
should be cleaned whenever there are performance anomalies that are
associated with a dirty ion source. See
symptoms that indicate a dirty ion source.
Visual appearance is not an accurate guide to cleanliness of the CI ion
source. The CI ion source can show little or no discoloration yet still need
cleaning. Let analytical performance be your guide.
Procedure

Cleaning the CI ion source
source. Use the cleaning procedure in
page 135 with the following exceptions:
• The CI ion source may not look dirty but deposits left by chemical
• Use a round wooden toothpick to gently clean out the electron entrance
• Do not use halogenated solvents. Use hexane for the final rinse.
Do not use halogenated solvents to clean the CI ion source.
CA UT IO N
164
ionization are very difficult to remove. Clean the CI ion source thoroughly.
hole in the source body and the ion exit hole in the drawout plate.
"CI Troubleshooting"
(Figure 31) is very similar to cleaning the EI ion
"To clean the EI ion source"
5975 Series MSD Troubleshooting and Maintenance Manual
on page 57 for
on