Determination of mercury in geological materials by continuous-flow, cold-vapor, atomic absorption spectrophotometry
To determine mercury in geological materials, samples are digested with nitric acid and sodium dichromate in a closed teflon vessel. After bringing to a constant weight, the digest is mixed with air and a sodium chloride-hydroxylamine hydrochloride-sulfuric acid solution and then Hg(II) is reduced to Hg/sup 0/ with stannous chloride in a continuous flow manifold. The mercury vapor is then separated and measured using cold vapor atomic absorption spectrophotometry (CV-AAS). For a 100 mg sample the limit of detection is 20 parts-per-billion (ppb) Hg in sample. To obtain a 1% absorption signal, the described method requires 0.21 ppb Hg solution (equal to 16 ppb in sample). Precision is acceptable at less than 1.2% RSD for a 10 ppb Hg aqueous standard. Accuracy is demonstrated by the results of the analysis on standard reference materials. Several elements do interfere but the effect is minimal because either the digestion procedure does not dissolve them (e.g., Au or Pt) or they are normally of low abundance (e.g., Se or Te).
- Research Organization:
- Geological Survey, Denver, CO
- OSTI ID:
- 6182314
- Journal Information:
- Anal. Lett.; (United States), Journal Name: Anal. Lett.; (United States) Vol. 20:6; ISSN ANALB
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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400102* -- Chemical & Spectral Procedures
510200 -- Environment
Terrestrial-- Chemicals Monitoring & Transport-- (-1989)
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
ABSORPTION SPECTROSCOPY
ALKALI METAL COMPOUNDS
CHEMICAL ANALYSIS
CHROMIUM COMPOUNDS
DATA
DICHROMATES
ELEMENTS
EXPERIMENTAL DATA
FLOW RATE
HYDROGEN COMPOUNDS
INFORMATION
INORGANIC ACIDS
INTERFERING ELEMENTS
MERCURY
METALS
NITRIC ACID
NUMERICAL DATA
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
QUANTITATIVE CHEMICAL ANALYSIS
ROCKS
SODIUM COMPOUNDS
SPECTROSCOPY
TRACE AMOUNTS
TRANSITION ELEMENT COMPOUNDS