20th Annual Student Research Conference
Science
Construction and Characterization of a Thermospray Nebulizer for Sample Introduction into a Direct Current Plasma
Bipin Pandey* and Thomas C. Clark
Dr. David McCurdy, Faculty Mentor
The measurement of trace level (ppb) elements requires highly sensitive instrumentation. The Direct Current Plasma (DCP) atomic emission spectrometer is a technique commonly used for these analyses. Pneumatic nebulization (PN) is the standard approach for introducing liquid samples into the DCP, routinely allowing the measurement of concentrations of 1-10 ppb. However, PN, often considered the weak link in a powerful method, is often not adequate for many applications. In order to improve sample introduction into the DCP, we have designed and constructed a highly efficient thermospray nebulizer (TSP). This talk will present our current studies characterizing our TSP-DCP instrument and its potential for trace level elemental analysis. Our TSP-DCP improved several important measures of analytical performance when compared to PN, while using significantly smaller sample volumes. We hope ultimately to achieve sub ppb LODs with further optimization and refinement of the TCP-DCP instrument.
Keywords: atomic emission, DCP, TCP, PN, atomic spectroscopy, elemental analysis, sample introduction, LOD
Topic(s):Chemistry
Presentation Type: Oral Paper
Session: 30-4
Location: VH 1212
Time: 10:30 am