Furnace atomic absorption, direct analysis solids

Nowka R, Muller H (1997) Direct analysis of solid samples by graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry with a transversely heated graphite atomizer and D2-background correction system (SS GF-AAS). Fresenius J Anal Chem 359 132-137. 

H. Muller. Direct Analysis of Solid Samples by Graphite Furnace Atomic Absorption Spectrometry, Fresenius J. Anal. Chem. 1997,359, 132. 

Kueeuest U (1998d) Direct solid sampling with graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry (GF-AAS). In Kurfiirst U, ed. Solid Sample Analysis, Direct Slurry Sampling using GF-AAS and ETV-ICP, pp. 129-190. Springer-Verlag, Berlin. 

De Schrijver, I., Aramendia, M., Resano, M., Dumoulin, A., Vanhaecke, F (2008) Novel strategies for rapid trace element analysis of polyamide by graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. Dissolution in an organic solvent versus direct solid sampling approaches. /. Anal. At. Spectrom., 23, 500-507. 

Electrodeposition onto solid electrodes or mercury cathodes is a long established pre-treatment capable of large concentration factors, and provided the cathode potential is carefully controlled it is also of considerable selectivity. When atomic absorption is used as the finish, selective deposition is not usually required. There have been recent reports of electrodeposition of trace metals from water samples directly onto special graphite furnace tubes [8] and this technique should prove to be just as applicable to the analysis of reagents, where the chemical conditions can be more carefully controlled. The utility of electrodeposition for electrothermal atomisation... 

Thermal evaporation of the analyte elements from the sample has long been used in atomic spectrometry. For instance, it had been applied by PreuE in 1940 [170], who evaporated volatile elements from a geological sample in a tube furnace and transported the released vapors into an arc source. In addition, it was used in so-called double arc systems, where selective volatilization was also used in direct solids analysis. Electrothermal vaporization became particularly important with the work of L vov et al. [171] and Massmann in Dortmund [172], who introduced elec-trothermally heated sytems for the determination of trace elements in dry solution residues by atomic absorption spectrometry of the vapor cloud. Since then, the idea has regularly been taken up for several reasons. 

Kotz etal. (1972, Decomposition of biological materials for the determination of extremely low contents of trace elements in limited amounts with nitric acid under pressure in a Teflon tube) Hartstein et al. (1973, Novel wet-digestion procedure for trace-metal analysis of coal by atomic absorption) Jackson etal. (1978), Automated digestion and extraction apparatus for use in the determination of trace metals in foodstuffs) Campos etal. (1990, Combustion and volatilization of solid samples for direct atomic absorption spectrometry using silica or nickel tube furnace atomizers) Erber et al. (1994, The Wickbold combustion method for the determination of mercury under statistical aspects) and Woit-tiez and Sloof (1994, Sampling and sample preparation). 

Other direct methods used more routinely for solid sampling analysis make use of an atomization cell, usually a graphite furnace, and optical spectrometry. Optical spectrometry techniques used are inductively coupled plasma (ICP) and atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS). This last technique, solid sampling atomic absorption spectrometry (SS-AAS), is used by far the most and thus will be dealt with more comprehensively. 

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