Electron microscopy of submicron particles in natural waters — Specimen preparation by centrifugation

Particles ranging from ca. 0.1 to 1.0m in 5 ml of pond water are collected on a 10–20 nm carbon film on a gold or copper specimen grid, placed on a special holder in a 7-ml centrifuge tube, by centrifugation at 10000 r. p. m. for 18 min. The specimens thus prepared are reproducible and preserve the morphology of the particles satisfactorily. The proposed technique is more suitable than filtration, direct drying and spray drying techniques for morphological studies and elemental analysis of individual particles with scanning, transmission and analytical electron microscopes.