Professor Aviv Amirav

Laboratory of Analytical Instruments Development

Research Goals and Achievements:

The research is aimed towards the development of novel analytical instrumentation for largely improved broad range of analysis and applications including fuels, new synthetic organic compounds, environmental pollutants, pesticides in agricultural products, drugs in biological fluids and forensics. Professor Amirav is the author and co-author of 196 peer reviewed papers with ISI citation index h of 47 (54 in Google Scholar and 56 in Research.com) and the inventor of 20 international patents.

Special emphasis is given to collaborations with the international analytical instrument industry.

Current topics of research and instruments that were developed include:

1. Gas Chromatography Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) with Supersonic Molecular Beams (Cold EI) - Leading the Way to the Future of GC-MS. (GC-MS with Cold EI)

2. Liquid Chromatography Mass Spectrometry (LC-MS) with Supersonic Molecular Beams - Improved electron ionization LC-MS for the provision of library searchable mass spectra for a broad range of compounds, unique uniform response, ionization of non-polar compounds and no ion suppression. (LC-MS with Cold EI)

3. Isotope Abundance Analysis - TAMI software for the effective provision of elemental formula from quadrupole based GC-MS data files plus automated NIST library confirmation or rejection  

4. Pulsed Flow Modulation GCxGC and GCxGC-MS with Cold EI - Lowest cost easy to use GCxGC modulation technology for the combination of improved GC separation and ultimate GC-MS with Cold EI sample identification information. 

5. Fast GC - Less than onje minute Ultra Fast GC and GC-MS analysis cycle time with standard fused silica columns.

6. Open-Probe Fast-GC-MS - Real time analysis with separation and library identificatio. Much better than all the ambient desorption ionization methods (Agilent name QuickProbe)

7. Pulsed Flame Photometric Detector (PFPD) - for gas chromatography. Over 4000 units are in world wide use. The best FPD and much more.

8. Fast GC-PFPD system for Field Analysis of Chemical Warfare Agents - Ultra trace level CWA analysis without false alarms combined with agent identification at the molecular level.

9. Electrolyzer powered Flame Ionization Detector (EFID) - Gas cylinder free FID. Saves GC purchase and maintenance cost more than the price of GC in its lifetime, combined with improved safety, sensitivity, GC transportability and ease of use, and all the above with zero added cost as the simple electrolyzer replaces the costly three channel EFC of the FID. 

10. Human Breath Analyzer for Medical Diagnostics - (with the "GasFree" GC-FID)

11. ChromatoProbe and SnifProbe - sample introduction devices and methods for MS probe sampling (Best MS Probe), extract-free thermal desorption GC and GC-MS analysis and airborne vapor sampling. over 1700 units are in wide worldwide service (Agilent name is Thermal Separation Probe).