Maintenance; Clean The Probes - AB Sciex 4500 Series System User's Manual

Turbo V™ Ion Source User Reference
Optimize the APCI Probe Temperature
The quantity and type of solvent affects the optimal APCI probe temperature. At higher flow
rates, the optimal temperature increases.
Optimization is usually performed in increments of 50°C.
WARNING! Toxic Chemical Hazard: Vent the source exhaust system to an
external fume hood or an external vent to prevent hazardous vapors from being
released into the laboratory environment.
1. On the Source/Gas tab in the Tune Method Editor, type a starting value for the
Temperature (TEM).
2. Adjust the temperature parameter as required until the best signal or signal-to-noise
ratio is achieved.

Maintenance

To determine how often to clean the ion source or perform preventive maintenance, consider the
following:
• Compounds tested
• Cleanliness of the preparation methods
• Amount of time an idle probe contains a sample
• Overall system run time
These factors can cause changes in mass spectrometer performance, indicating that
maintenance is required.
Perform periodic gas leakage tests and general maintenance inspections to be sure of safe
operation of the system. Clean the ion source regularly to keep it in good working condition.
Caution: Potential Instrument Damage: Use only the recommended cleaning method to
avoid damaging the equipment.
Required Tools
• 1/4 inch open-ended wrench
• 9/64 inch Allen key (supplied)
• 5 mm Allen key
• 2.5 mm Allen key
• Phillips screwdriver
• Slotted screwdriver

Clean the Probes

Flush the ion source periodically, regardless of the type of compounds sampled. Do this by
setting up a method in the Analyst software specifically for performing a flushing operation.
1. Switch to a mobile phase that is 50:50 water:acetonitrile or 50:50 water:methanol.
4500 Series of Instruments
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System User Guide
Document Number: D5030863 A