| Mass spectrometry has been, and continues to be, a relevant analytical technique for environmental analysis. Many standard methods for the analysis of organic environmental pollutants include the use of mass spectrometry, specifically gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) and liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC/MS). However, new pollutants that cannot be analyzed with existing standard methods are constantly being added to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) priority pollutant list for regulation. Additionally, the EPA periodically establishes new guidelines for the limits of detection for priority pollutants, requiring standard methodology to be improved. The work presented in this dissertation focuses on application of glow discharge ionization (GDI) as an analytical method for analysis of several environmentally relevant compounds.; Three interfaces to the GDI source have been evaluated in addition to the use of GDI for ionization of analyte molecules in the quadrupole ion trap. These techniques (ES-ASGDI, TD-ASGDI, Aerosol-ASGDI, and SICI-MS) have been used in the analysis of two groups of environmental pollutants. Electrospray and thermal desorption interfaces are used to introduce liquid-phase samples, disinfection by-products in drinking water, into the glow discharge source. Quantification of the disinfection by-products is provided to demonstrate applicability of ES-ASGDI and TD-ASGDI to the analysis of environmental pollutants in drinking water. The products from the ozonolysis of biogenic hydrocarbons in air are analyzed using the Aerosol-ASGDI interface and selected ion chemical ionization (SICI-MS). On-line measurements of the oxidation products of the biogenic aerosols are obtained using the Aerosol-ASGDI interface. Selected ion chemical ionization in the quadrupole ion trap allows ionization of the oxidation reaction products while limiting the amount of fragmentation that is observed. Operational parameters for each of the four techniques are evaluated for the effect each has on the analyte ion intensity. |
