Comparison of two ICP-MS set-ups for measuring 99Tc in large volume water samples

Large volume fjord and seawater samples have been radiochemically prepared for ICP-MS analysis in order to test the robustness of the procedure and to carry out a comparison of two ICP-MS set-ups. A sector field instrument (MicroMass PT2) coupled with an ultrasonic nebuliser and a quadrupole ICP-MS (Perkin-Elmer Elan 6000) coupled with an electrothermal vaporisation (ETV) unit were used. The results showed that the radiochemical procedure was robust, removing Ru and Mo to acceptable levels, and that the two set-ups gave results that were in agreement. The correlation coefficient between the sets of 11 results was 1.0 +/- 0.05. The importance of establishing the matrix effect when using an ETV is discussed.