Study of the Mercury Content in Solid Natural Samples

摘要

This article reports the study of the mercury content in solid samples by two variants of atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS): (1) using direct thermal evacuation (desorption) and (2) microwave sample digestion in an aggressive acid medium, with further analysis by AAS. The merits and limitations of each method are considered. It is shown that, unlike express thermal evacuation, acid digestion allows one to analyze a broad range of solid phase samples with a high content of strongly bound mercury, despite the complexity of sample preparation. The two methods indicated above have been well correlated for soil profiles and sediment with a minor content of strongly bound mercury, which allows one to accurately compare the obtained results; the complex use of these methods makes it possible to expand the range of analyzed natural objects and obtain reliable information about mercury contents.