The determination of gold in geochemical samples by non-dispersive atomic fluorescence spectrometry

Non-dispersive flame atomic fluorescence spectrometry is a very sensitive method for the determination of gold, with a limit of detection in aqueous solution of about 0.5 ng ml^?1. However, the application of the technique to aqua regia digests of geochemical samples is limited by large scatter signals which are due mainly to aluminium. The use of an auxiliary lamp to provide correction for scatter is suitable for samples containing low concentrations of elements which form refractory compounds in the flame or for samples where the full sensitivity of the fluorescence technique is not required. To obtain both high accuracy and sensitivity, gold must be separated from the scattering matrix and this can be achieved by a simple extraction with a 0.1% (w/v) solution of a trioctylmethyl-ammonium salt (Aliquat-336) in di-isobutyl ketone. The use of fluorescence avoids the need for a large extraction ratio and a subsequent washing step to remove iron, as is normally required for atomic absorption measurements.     

化学蒸气发生-四通道原子荧光光谱法同时测定水样中的痕量砷、锑、硒和汞

应用自行设计的化学蒸气发生-四通道无色散原子荧光光谱仪,建立了同时测定水样中As、Sb、Se、Hg的新方法.在实验中优化了四元素同时化学蒸气发生条件和测定的最佳工作参数.在样品预处理阶段用HCl将Se6+还原为Se4+,然后用质量浓度5 g/L硫脲将As5+和Sb5+还原为As3+和Sb3+.在最佳条件下,方法对As、Sb、Se、Hg的检出限分别为0.05、0.03、0.05、0.01 ng/mL(3d);RSD分别为0.42%、0.74%、0.97%、1.0%(对5 ng/mL As、Sb、Se和0.5ng/mL Hg混合标准,n=7).用所建立的方法对不同类型水样中的As、Sb、Se、Hg进行了同时测定,测定结果与用标准方法测定所得结果之间无明显差异,各元素的加标回收率在93%～105%.     

Interferences removal for cadmium determination in samples with complex matrices by hydride generation coupled with non-dispersive atomic fluorescence spectrometry.

An intermittent on-line concentration and separation system coupled with HG-AFS was developed to eliminate serious interferences from Cu2+, Pb2+ and Zn2+ on the determination of cadmium. In the present method, the interferences from common coexisting ions, such as Cu2+, Pb2+, Zn2+, Fe3+ and Ni2+, were greatly reduced. Under the optimized conditions, a detection limit of 3 pg ml(-1) (3sigma, n=11) and a precision of 1.9% RSD for 1 ng ml(-1) of Cd were obtained. The method was successfully applied to the determination of cadmium in a series of Chinese Geological Reference Materials (SRMs) and GBW01621 ferronickel alloy using simple aqueous standard calibration technique. The results obtained were in good agreement with the certified values.     

Determination of trace mercury in environmental samples by cold vapor atomic fluorescence spectrometry after cloud point extraction

Newly synthesized poly(aryleneethynylene)s carrying substituents such as leucine, glycine and methionine have been prepared and tested for their ability to bind Hg(II) ions. Binding resulted in strong quenching of the fluorescence emission of all the compounds tested. A comparative study of the quenching efficiency by Hg(II) was then carried out in a flow injection system. Quenching efficiency was amplified in the polymeric material because of the so-called “wire effect” that is observed with organic conducting polymers. Under the experimental conditions used, detection limits are in the 50–100 ppb range. The selectivity for Hg(II) is remarkable in that a series of other divalent cations did not give any measurable effect, a slight response being observed for methylmercury only. The materials hold promise for selective determination of Hg(II) ion.     

Simultaneous determination of arsenic, antimony, bismuth and mercury in geological materials by vapor generation-four-channel non-dispersive atomic fluorescence spectrometry

Chemical vapor generation (CVG) coupled with non-dispersive atomic fluorescence spectrometry (NDAFS) has been widely used for determination of vapor-forming elements, but most of such works have been focused on single element analysis, and reports dealing with more than three elements simultaneous determination by CVG-NDAFS are rare. In this work, a sensitive and robust analytical procedure for the simultaneous determination of arsenic, antimony, bismuth and mercury in geological materials using vapor generation-four-channel non-dispersive atomic fluorescence spectrometry has been developed. The conditions of instrumentation and vapor generation of arsenic, antimony, bismuth and mercury were optimized. The optimized concentrations of KBH(4) and HCl required for analytes generation were 1.3% (m/v) and 20% (v/v), respectively. The interferences of coexisting ions and mutual hydride interferences were investigated carefully. One thousand milligrams per litre of Fe(3+); 500mgl(-1) of Pb(2+), Zn(2+), Mn(2+); 50mgl(-1) Cu(2+), Ni(2+), Cr(6+), Co(2+); 10mgl(-1) Ag(+) and 5mgl(-1) Au(3+) does not interfere with the determination of As, Sb, Bi and Hg. Associating a dilution of 1:250 (m/v) in the procedure of sample pretreatment, the tolerant concentrations of As, Sb, Bi and Hg in real geological materials are 2500, 1000, 250 and 5000ppm, respectively. Under optimal conditions, the detection limits for As, Sb, Bi and Hg were determined to be 0.068, 0.047, 0.037 and 0.008ngml(-1), respectively. The precisions for seven replicate determinations at the 5ngml(-1) of As, Sb, Bi and 1ngml(-1) of Hg were 0.47, 0.60, 0.97 and 0.93% (R.S.D.), respectively. Sample digestion was carried out on 500mg sample with 3ml HNO(3) and 10ml HCl, followed by addition of thiourea solution for the quantitative reduction of As(V), Sb(V) to As(III), Sb(III). The proposed method was successfully applied to the simultaneous determination of As, Sb, Bi and Hg in a series of certified geological reference materials using simple aqueous standard calibration technique. The results obtained are in good agreement with the certified values.     

Indirect determination of phosphorus by non-dispersive atomic fluorescence spectrometry of antimony

Phosphate is converted to molybdoantimonylphosphoric acid, which is reduced and extracted into isobutyl acetate. The extracted material is atomized in a graphite furnace and antimony determined by non-dispersive atomic fluorescence spectrometry. The detection limit is 2 ng of phosphorus, limited by the reagent blank, and the linear analytical range covers three decades of concentration up to 2 μg. The technique is applied to the determination of phosphorus in a phosphosilicate glass film deposited on a silicon wafer.     

化学蒸气发生-四通道原子荧光光谱法同时测定高纯金中的痕量As,Sb,Bi,Te

采用化学蒸气发生-四通道原子荧光光谱法测定了高纯金中的痕量砷、锑、铋和碲。用乙酸乙脂萃取分离金,水相还原后采用化学蒸气发生-四通道原子荧光光谱法测定高纯金中的痕量砷、锑、铋和碲。在最佳条件下,方法对As,Sb,Bi,Te的检出限分别为0.04,0.05,0.04,0.03 ng/mL(3σ);测定精密度分别为0.98,0.89,0.94,0.99%(对10 ng/mL As,Sb,Bi和Te混合标准,n=7)。方法对实际样品中的As,Sb,Bi,Te进行了同时测定,测定结果与标准方法无明显差异,各元素的加标回收率为95%～105%。     

Determination of heavy metals in soil, mushroom and plant samples by atomic absorption spectrometry

The concentrations of heavy metals in the soil, mushroom and plant samples collected from Tokat, Turkey have been determined by flame and graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry after dry ashing, wet ashing and microwave digestion. The study of sample preparation procedures showed that the microwave digestion method was the best. Good accuracy was assured by the analysis of standard reference materials. The relative standard deviations for all measured metal concentrations were lower than 10%. In all cases, quantitative analytical recoveries ranging from 95 to 103% were obtained. Metal accumulation factors were calculated for mushroom and plant samples. High ratio of plants to soil cadmium, zinc and copper concentrations indicate that these elements are accumulated by mushrooms. Results obtained are in agreement with data reported in the literature.     

Depth profiles of arsenic in semiconductor silicon by chemical etching and non-dispersive atomic fluorescence spectrometry with hydride generation

An improved non-dispersive atomic fluorescence spectrometric determination of arsenic by sodium tetrahydroborate reduction is described. A new burner on which a small argon-hydrogen-entrained air flame can be maintained at a low hydrogen flow rate (0.15 1 min^-1) is reported. The detection limit ($\text{S}\text{N}$ = 2) is 10 pg of arsenic, and the analytical working curve is linear over four decades of concentration from the detection limit. The system is applied to depth profiling of arsenic in silicon slices. The silicon is anodized, the silica film is removed by hydrofluoric acid and the arsenic in the etching solution determined. The depth of silicon removed is measured by determining the silicon content in the etching solution by inductively-coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry. The method permits determinations of ?10¹⁸ atoms As cm^-3 in 30-nm sections of a silicon slice with a diameter of 5.1 cm.     

Simultaneous determination of arsenic, selenium, tin and mercury by non-dispersive atomic fluorescence spectrometry

A procedure is described for simultaneous determination of arsenic, selenium, tin and mercury in aqueous solution by non-dispersive atomic-fluorescence spectrometry. Radiofrequency-excited EDLs, 100% modulated in the kHz region, were used for atom excitation. Sodium tetrahydroborate was used as reductant and a hydrogen-argon miniflame as atomizer. In the optimized procedure, which uses 1 ml of sample, the limits of detection (three times the standard deviation of the blank) were 0.04, 0.08, 0.1 and 0.1 ng ml for arsenic, selenium, tin and mercury respectively. The linear dynamic range was greater than three decades for all analytes and the precision was better than 7% (typically 3%) for concentrations 1 ng ml . Results for mutual interference effects are reported. Copper, nickel, lead and cobalt interfered only with selenium (5 ng ml ), when present in at least 200-fold weight ratio to it. Using 5 ml of sample improved the limits of detection for selenium and arsenic (0.01 and 0.02 ng ml respectively), but at the expense of greater interference. Recovery from spiked natural water samples was better than 95% at the ng ml level, except for selenium in sea-water, when the recovery was only 85%. Determination of the four elements, including standard-addition and background measurements, requires about 10 min.     

Simultaneous determination of trace cadmium and mercury in Chinese herbal medicine by non-dispersive atomic fluorescence spectrometry using intermittent flow vapor generator.

A method was proposed for the simultaneous determination of trace cadmium and mercury by vapor generation non-dispersive atomic fluorescence spectrometry using an intermittent flow system. The effects of the parameters on the performance were studied systematically. The parameters such as acid concentration of the reaction medium, flow rate of the carrier gas and shield gas, the observation height and the atomizer temperature, etc. which affected the sensitivity, were optimized. Ascorbic acid, cobalt ion and thiourea were used as enhancement reagents or masking agents to enhance the generation efficiency of the volatile species of Cd and Hg. The mechanisms of their effects on vapor generation were investigated. In the presence of thiourea and ascorbic acid, the influences of some coexisting elements on the determination of cadmium and mercury were investigated. The detection limits (3sigma) were 0.010 microg l(-1) for Cd and 0.019 microg l(-1) for Hg, respectively. The relative standard deviations for Cd and Hg at 1.00 microg l(-1) were 2.6% and 0.97% (n = 11), respectively. The proposed method has been satisfactorily applied to the determination of trace cadmium and mercury in Chinese herbal medicine.     

Determination of tin in steels by non-dispersive atomic fluorescence spectrometry coupled with flow-injection hydride generation in the presence of L-cysteine

Flow-injection hydride generation has been coupled with a non-dispersive atomic fluorescence spectrometer for the determination of trace concentrations of tin. The use of L-cysteine in stannane generation enhances the atomic fluorescence signal for tin. In addition, it appears that the flow-injection method allows the use of a wider range of acid concentrations, and hence interference from transition elements is also reduced. An absolute detection limit of 1.3 ng was achieved with a 0.5 ml sample. Ten determinations of a solution containing 100 ng ml⁻¹ of tin(H) generated a relative standard deviation of 1.8%. The linear dynamic range of the calibration curve extended over three orders of magnitude and sample throughput rate was 144 samples h⁻¹. Application of the proposed technique is demonstrated by the determination of tin in low alloy steel standard reference materials.     

Determination of mercury by electrochemical cold vapor generation atomic fluorescence spectrometry using polyaniline modified graphite electrode as cathode

An electrochemical cold vapor generation system with polyaniline modified graphite electrode as cathode material was developed for Hg (II) determination by coupling with atomic fluorescence spectrometry. This electrochemical cold vapor generation system with polyaniline/graphite electrode exhibited higher sensitivity; excellent stability and lower memory effect compared with graphite electrode electrochemical cold vapor generation system. The relative standard deviation was 2.7% for eleven consecutive measurements of 2 ng mL^− 1 Hg (II) standard solution and the mercury limit of detection for the sample blank solution was 1.3 рg mL^− 1 (3σ). The accuracy of the method was evaluated through analysis of the reference materials GBW09101 (Human hair) and GBW 08517 (Laminaria Japonica Aresch) and the proposed method was successfully applied to the analysis of human hairs.     

Improving the analytical performance of hydride generation non-dispersive atomic fluorescence spectrometry. Combined effect of additives and optical filters

The effects of tetrahydroborate and acid concentration and the presence of l-cysteine and thiourea were investigated in the determination of As, Bi and Sn using continuous flow hydride generation atomic fluorescence spectrometry (HG AFS). The aim was to find conditions allowing the control of those effects exerting negative influence on the analytical performance of the HG AFS apparatus. The effects taken into account were: (i) the radiation scattering generated by carryover of solution from the gas–liquid separator to the atomizer; (ii) the introduction of molecular species generated by tetrahydroborate decomposition into the atomizer; and (iii) interference effects arising from other elements in the sample matrix and from different acids. The effects (i) and (ii) could be controlled using mild reaction conditions in the HG stage. The effect of HG conditions on carryover was studied by radiation scattering experiments without hydride atomization. Compromised HG conditions were found by studying the effects of tetrahydroborate (0.1–20 g l⁻¹) and acid (0.01–7 mol l⁻¹) concentration, and the addition of l-cysteine (10 g l⁻¹) and thiourea (0.1 mol l⁻¹) on the HG AFS signals. The effect of optical filters was investigated with the aim of improving the signal-to-noise ratio. Optical filters with peak wavelengths of 190 and 220 nm provided an improvement of detection limits by factors of approximately 4 and 2 for As and Te, respectively. Under optimized conditions the detection limits were 6, 5, 3, 2, 2 and 9 ng l⁻¹ for As, Sb, Bi, Sn, Se and Te, respectively. Good tolerance to various acid compositions and sample matrices was obtained by using l-cysteine or thiourea as masking agents. Determination of arsenic in sediment and copper certified reference materials, and of bismuth in steel, sediment, soil and ore certified reference material is reported.     

Determination of mercury by intermittent flow electrochemical cold vapor generation coupled to atomic fluorescence spectrometry

A novel method for determination of mercury was developed using an intermittent flow electrochemical cold vapor generation coupled to atomic fluorescence spectrometry (IF-ECVG-AFS). The mercury vapor was generated on the surface of glassy carbon cathode in the flow cell. The operating conditions for the electrochemical generation of mercury vapor were investigated in detail, and the interferences from various ions were evaluated. Under the optimized conditions, no evident memory effects of mercury were observed. The calibration curve was linear up to 5 μg L⁻¹ Hg at 0.54 A cm⁻². A detection limit of 1.2 ng L⁻¹ Hg and a relative standard deviation of 1.8% for 1 μg L⁻¹ Hg were obtained. The accuracy of method was verified by the determination of mercury in the certified reference human hair. The ECVG avoided the use of reductants, thereby greatly reducing the contamination sources. In addition, the manifold of IF-ECVG-AFS was simple and amenable to automation.     

Efficient generation of volatile species for cadmium analysis in seafood and rice samples by a modified chemical vapor generation system coupled with atomic fluorescence spectrometry

A vapor generation procedure to determine Cd by atomic fluorescence spectrometry (AFS) has been established. Volatile species of Cd are generated by following reaction of acidified sample containing Fe(II) and l-cysteine (Cys) with sodium tetrahydroborate (NaBH₄). The presence of 5 mg L⁻¹ Fe(II) and 0.05% m/v Cys improves the efficiency of Cd vapor generation substantially about four-fold compared with conventional thiourea and Co(II) system. Three experiments with different mixing sequences and reaction times are designed to study the reaction mechanism. The results document that the stability of Cd(II)–Cys complexes is better than Cys–THB complexes (THB means NaBH₄) while the Cys–THB complexes have more contribution to improve the Cd vapor generation efficiency than Cd(II)–Cys complexes. Meanwhile, the adding of Fe(II) can catalyze the Cd vapor generation. Under the optimized conditions, the detection limit of Cd is 0.012 μg L⁻¹; relative standard deviations vary between 0.8% and 5.5% for replicate measurements of the standard solution. In the presence of 0.01% DDTC, Cu(II), Pb(II) and Zn(II) have no significant influence up to 5 mg L⁻¹, 10 mg L⁻¹and 10 mg L⁻¹, respectively. The accuracy of the method is verified through analysis of the certificated reference materials and the proposed method has been applied in the determination of Cd in seafood and rice samples.     

Direct determination of mercury in white vinegar by matrix assisted photochemical vapor generation atomic fluorescence spectrometry detection

This paper proposes the use of photochemical vapor generation with acetic acid as sample introduction for the direct determination of ultra-trace mercury in white vinegars by atomic fluorescence spectrometry. Under ultraviolet irradiation, the sample matrix (acetic acid) can reduce mercury ion to atomic mercury Hg⁰, which is swept by argon gas into an atomic fluorescence spectrometer for subsequent analytical measurements. The effects of several factors such as the concentration of acetic acid, irradiation time, the flow rate of the carrier gas and matrix effects were discussed and optimized to give detection limits of 0.08 ng mL⁻¹ for mercury. Using the experimental conditions established during the optimization (3% v/v acetic acid, 30 s irradiation time and 20 W mercury lamp), the precision levels, expressed as relative standard deviation, were 4.6% (one day) and 7.8% (inter-day) for mercury (n = 9). Addition/recovery tests for evaluation of the accuracy were in the range of 92–98% for mercury. The method was also validated by analysis of vinegar samples without detectable amount of Hg spiked with aqueous standard reference materials (GBW(E) 080392 and GBW(E) 080393). The results were also compared with those obtained by acid digestion procedure and determination of mercury by ICP-MS. There was no significant difference between the results obtained by the two methods based on a t-test (at 95% confidence level).     

电化学冷蒸气发生-原子荧光光谱法测定人发中的痕量汞

采用自制的电化学流通池作为汞蒸气发生器,以玻碳为阴极材料,结合原子荧光光谱法,在断续流动条件下,建立了电化学冷蒸气发生法-原子荧光光谱联用技术(ECVG-AFS)对汞的分析方法.在优化的实验条件下,汞在0～5.0μg/L范围内荧光强度与浓度呈良好的线性关系,汞的检出限为1.2 ng/L.对1μg/L Hg测定的相对标准偏差为1.8%(n=11).可用于人发标准样品中汞的测定.     

Determination of trace mercury in geological samples by direct slurry sampling cold vapor generation atomic absorption spectrometry

A new method based on ultrasonic slurry sampling atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS) was established for the determination of trace mercury in geological samples by use of recently developed mercury cold vapor generation using formic acid under ultraviolet (UV) irradiation. The generated mercury cold vapor was rapidly separated from the matrix and swept into a T-tube for the measurement of atomic absorbance. Under the optimal experimental conditions, up to 1000-fold of Cu(II), Co(II), Ni(II), Cr(VI), Mn(II), Fe(III), and Zn(II) caused no significant interference with the determination of 50 μg L⁻¹ Hg. The limit of detection at sub-ppb level was obtained for mercury. The method was applied to the determination of mercury in geological samples with satisfactory results. Correspondence: Xiandeng Hou, College of Chemistry, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610064, China     

Continuous flow electrolytic cold vapor generation atomic fluorescence spectrometric determination of Hg in water samples

The determination of trace concentrations of Hg in water samples by the use of electrolytic cold vapor generation (ECVG) system and AFS was studied. Several buffer solutions were used and the detection limits with these systems were found to be by a factor of 1–2 lower than in the conventional electrolytic cold vapor generation system. Comparing with the traditional inorganic acid, phosphate buffer solution (PBS) increased the signal intensity of Hg vapor from electrolytic generation on Pt cathode and reduced the impact of cathode erosion on the stability of signal intensity. Moreover, buffer solution has better interference tolerance. The effects of the electrolytic conditions and interference ions on the ECVG have been studied. Under optimized conditions and with PBS as catholyte the detection limit for Hg was found to be 0.27 ng L⁻¹. The relative standard deviation was 2.8% for 11 consecutive measurements of 1 μg L⁻¹ Hg. This method has been applied in the determination of inorganic Hg in Yangtze River water.