Direct analysis of titanium dioxide solid powder by fluorination assisted electrothermal vaporization inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry

Fluorination assisted electrothermal vaporization (ETV) was employed as sam ple introduction technique for the direct determination of trace amounts of impurities in titanium dioxide solid powder by inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry (ICP-AES). A polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) em ulsion is used as a fluorination reagent to promote the vaporization of imp urity elements in TiO2 powder from the graphite tube; the vaporization beha vior of matrix element (Ti) and analyte (Cr, Cu, Fe and V) were studied. Un der the selected conditions, about 100 mu g solid sample (10 mu l of 1% m/v TiO2 slurry) was pipetted into furnace, a pre-volatilization of the matrix could be performed by an ashing time of 70 s at 800 degrees C to eliminate the matrix effect, and then the analytes were vaporized into plasma at the vaporizing temperature of 2600 degrees C. Calibration was performed using the standard addition method. The accuracy was checked by comparison of the results with solution fluorination assisted ETV-ICP-AES and pneumatic nebu lization (PN)-ICP-AES based on the wet-chemical decomposition. Limits of de tection between 0.07 mu g g(-1) (Cr) and 0.2 mu g g(-1) (V) were achieved. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.