Are ions which has been dissolved in water affected by magnetic fields in any measurable way? Basically, I want to measure different ions in a water solution. Would it be possible to build a mass spectrometer type sensor which subjects a stream of water to a strong magnetic field and thus affects the ions in the flowing water differently which leads to different pH, electrical resistance or some other property along different parts in the stream?
UPDATE: From my estimations (assuming all ions are spread out equally by Columb forces) the effect of the magnetic field appears to not be measurable, even at 1 T and 100m/s fluid speeds the Lorentz force would only change the distance between the ions by 0.00072%. Though the question still remains if only looking at the Columb forces and Lorentz forces is enough in this example so I will leave this up in the hopes that someone has a more detailed answer.
