With the development of nanotechnology and the increased use of nanoparticles (NPs) in numerous products and processes, the need to characterize them has also grown. Nanoparticles come in a wide variety of compositions, with silica dioxide (SiO2) nanoparticles being used in many areas. For successful implementation and incorporation into products, the size and size distribution of the SiO2 particles must be characterized.
Single Particle ICP-MS (SP-ICP-MS) was developed for rapid analysis of nanoparticles, measuring thousands of particles in less than a minute, while providing individual particle information on particle size, particle size distribution, particle concentration, dissolved concentration of the element, and agglomeration. This work demonstrates the ability of PerkinElmer’s NexION® ICP-MS Single Particle Analyzer to accurately measure SiO2 nanoparticles in Standard mode, leveraging its speed of analysis and shorter dwell times.