3.3. Evolved Gas Analysis-Mass Spectrometry (EGA-MS)

The instrumentation used for the EGA-MS analyses was the same as that used for the Py-GC/MS described in Section 2.2, used in a different instrumental configuration: the GC column was removed, and the pyrolyzer was coupled to the mass spectrometry system with a deactivated and uncoated stainless-steel transfer tube (UADTM-2.5N, 0.15 mm i.d.× 2.5 m length, Frontier Lab) kept at 300 °C, with an inlet temperature of 280 °C. The temperature program for the micro-furnace was an initial temperature of 50 °C, followed by a 10 °C/min ramp up to 800 °C. Analyses were performed under a helium flow (1 mL/min) with a 1:20 split ratio. The micro-furnace interface temperature was automatically kept 100 °C higher than the furnace temperature, up to a maximum value of 300 °C. The mass spectrometer was operated in EI positive mode (70 eV, scanning m/z 50–700). The sample sizes for the analysis were in the range 80–110 µg [36,47].