Proton transfer reactivity of large multiply charged ions.

Charge-charge interactions dramatically influence the dissociation and proton transfer reactivity of large multiply protonated ions. In combination with tandem mass spectrometry, proton transfer reactions have been used to determine the charge state of an ion and to increase the effective mass resolution of electrospray ionization mass spectra. A model for the proton transfer reactivity of multiply protonated ions, in which protons are assigned to specific sites in an ion based on the intrinsic reactivity of the site and the sum of point-charge Coulomb interactions between charges, is discussed. In combination with experimentally measured rates of proton transfer to bases of known gas-phase basicity, information about the intramolecular electrostatic interactions, gas-phase ion conformation and maximum charge state of an ion produced by electrospray ionization can be obtained.