Time-of-flight mass spectrometry is reviewed from its inception in the 1940s to the present day. The review is concerned with fundamentals of time-of-flight analyzers and of ion sources to the extent that sources influence analyzers. The patent literature has been covered, and efforts made to bring to light less well-known papers and studies © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Mass Spec Rev. 35:738-757, 2016.

: Dual-channel nano-electrospray has recently become an ionization technique of great promise especially in biological mass spectrometry. This unique approach takes advantage of the mixing processes that occurs during electrospray. Understanding in more detail the fundamental principles influencing spray formation further study of the origins of the mixing processes: (1) in a Taylor cone region, (2) in charged droplets or (3) in both environments. The dual-channel emitters were made from borosilicate theta-shape glass tubes (O.D. 1.2 mm) and had a tip diameters of less than 4 µm. Electrical contact was achived by deposition of a thin film of an appropriate metal onto the surface of the emitter. The experimental investigation of the Taylor cone formation in a dual-channel electrospray emitter has been carried out by injection of polystyrene beads (diameter 3 µm) at very low concentrations into one of the channels of the non-tapered theta-glass tubes. High-speed camera experiments were set up to visualize the mixing processes in Taylor cone regions for dual-channel emitters. Mass spectra from dual nano-electrospray are presented.

Irrigation is a useful crop enhancement procedure up to the point where free surface water appears. However, over-irrigation can lead to an accumulation of free water on the soil surface, which in turn results in overland flow and a high risk of contaminant loss. The current work addresses the problem of measuring free water on the surface of agricultural soils by a real-time acoustic remote sensing method. Directional acoustic transmitter and receiver arrays are used to define a “footprint” on the ground from which changes in reflectance are sensed. These arrays are mounted on a moving irrigator. Chirp signals are used to provide along-path resolution and to ensure robustness against unwanted acoustic background noise from farm machinery and the irrigator. Field measurements have been conducted above a well-defined “quadrat” with controlled and measured water content and also with the instrument mounted on an operational irrigator. A structured light camera mounted above the footprint is used to validate surface water fraction. It is found that the areal fraction of free water on the soil surface can be reliably estimated from changes in the amplitude of the reflected sound waves. The mechanism giving rise to the observed acoustic reflectivity changes is discussed and a model is developed which agrees with normalized intensity observations with a coefficient of determination R2 between 0.65 and 0.83. The rms error between model predictions and observations is comparable to the rms variation of the measurements, indicating that there is insignificant error due to the choice of model.

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Irrigation is a useful crop enhancement procedure up to the point where free surface water appears. Thereafter, water can begin to flow into waterways, leaching nutrients and giving rise to environmental damage, as well as being a waste of a precious resource. The current work addresses the problem of measuring free water on the surface of agricultural soils by a real-time acoustic remote sensing method. Directional acoustic transmitter and receiver arrays are used to define a ‘footprint’ on the ground from which changes in reflectance are sensed. These arrays are mounted on a moving irrigator. Chirp signals are used to provide along-path resolution and to ensure robustness against unwanted acoustic background noise from farm machinery and the irrigator. Field measurements have been conducted above a well-defined ‘quadrat’ with controlled and measured water content, and also with the instrument mounted on an operational irrigator. A structured light camera mounted above the footprint is used to validate surface water fraction. It is found that the areal fraction of free water on the soil surface can be reliably estimated from changes in the amplitude of the reflected sound waves. The mechanism giving rise to the observed acoustic reflectivity changes is discussed and a model is developed which agrees with normalized intensity observations with a coefficient of determination R2 between 0.65 and 0.83. The rms error between model predictions and observations is comparable to the rms variation of the measurements, indicating that there is insignificant error due to the choice of model.