USGS-NWQL: I-3900: Zinc, total recoverable, atomic absorption spectrometric
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Official Method Name
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Zinc, atomic absorption spectrometric, direct |
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Current Revision
| 1985 |
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Media
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WATER |
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Instrumentation
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Flame Atomic Absorption |
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Method Subcategory
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Inorganic |
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Method Source
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|
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Citation
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Methods for the Determination of Inorganic Substances in Water and Fluvial Sediments, Techniques of Water-Resources Investigations of the United States Geological Survey, Book 5, Chapter A1 Edited by Marvin J. Fishman and Linda C. Friedman |
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Brief Method Summary
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Zinc is determined by atomic absorption spectrometry by direct aspiration of the sample into an air-acetylene flame. The procedure may be automated by the addition of a sampler and either a strip-chart recorder or a printer or both. |
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Scope and Application
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This method may be used to analyze water-suspended sediment containing from 10 to 500 ug/L of zinc. Sample solutions containing more than 500 ug/L need to be diluted or to be read on a less expanded scale. Total recoverable zinc in water-suspended sediment needs to undergo preliminary digestion-solubilization by method I-3485. |
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Applicable Concentration Range
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10 to 500 ug/L |
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Interferences
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Magnesium at concentrations greater than 100 mg/L interferes unless other cations, such as sodium, are present in the sample. Individual concentrations of sodium, potassium, sulfate, chloride (9,000 mg/L of each), calcium (4,500 mg/L), nitrate (2,000 mg/L), iron (4 X 106 ug/L), and cadmium, nickel, copper, lead, cobalt, and chromium (10,000 ug/L each) do not interfere. Greater concentrations of each constituent were not investigated. Samples containing 100 mg/L of silica cause no interference; however, zinc recovery is approx. 10 percent low in samples containing 200 mg/L of silica. |
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Quality Control Requirements
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Calibrate instrument using calibration standards (CAL); quality control samples (QCS); and laboratory blanks (LB) analyzed at a minimum of 1 for every 10 samples. |
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Sample Handling
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Container Description: 250 mL polyethylene bottle, nitric acid rinsed Treatment and handling: Use unfiltered sample to rinse container, acidify sample with nitric acid to pH <2 |
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Maximum Holding Time
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180 days |
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Relative Cost
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Less than $50 |
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Sample Preparation Methods
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I-3485 |
