HG-AFS

Millennium Excalibur HG-AFS (As, Sb, Se, Bi, Te, Sn)

Only a few elements in the periodic table are able to form volatile hydrides which are able to detect by atomic fluorescence spectrometry. Among these elements are arsenic, antimony, selenium, bismuth, tellurium and tin.

In our laboratory we use the Millennium Excalibur from PS Analytical, which has a broad linear range, a good limit of detection for the different elements and good precision. The acidified liquid sample is mixed with alkaline sodium borohydride solution and the volatile hydrides are immediately formed together with hydrogen gas. The hydrogen gas functions as the fuel for the atomising flame where the hydrides decompose and the analyte remains in its atomic state. The outer electrons of the analyte are excited with the light of an element specific hallow cathode lamp and the adsorbed energy is emitted in form of fluorescence light. The fluorescence is detected with a Photomultiplier and the signal has a broad linear relationship to the concentration of the analyte in the sample.

The Millennium Excalibur System can be quickly connected to a HPLC system so that speciation of arsenic, antimony and selenium is achieved.