Mercury Analysis in Water - Avoid Background Contamination

http://mercuryanalyser.com/mercury-testing/mercury-analysis-in-water-the-purity-of-your-chemicals/ It is imperative to keep the background level under control otherwise you fail the QC automatically because of it. The high mercury background can come from the following sources:

Deionized water
Hydrochloric acid
Tin(II) chloride
Bromine solution
Hydroxylamine hydrochloride
Containers
Carrier gas – argon
Your lab environment
Personal hygiene

How to lower the background

Use highest purity available for the chemicals
Keep the concentrations as low as possible
Use clean containers
Boil your reductant and then purge it
Filter your argon carrier gas
Operate in environment
Change gloves often to avoid cross contamination

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