read this
http://www.nuigalway.ie/chemistry/level2/courses/CH205_atomic_absorption_spectroscopy.pdf, this will give full information
Atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS) is a spectroanalytical procedure for the quantitative determination of chemical elements employing the absorption of optical radiation (light) by free atoms in the gaseous state.
In analytical chemistry the technique is used for determining the concentration of a particular element (the analyte) in a sample to be analyzed. AAS can be used to determine over 70 different elements in solution or directly in solid samples employed in
pharmacology,
biophysics and
toxicology research.
The modern form of AAS was largely developed during the 1950s by a team of Australian chemists. They were led by
Sir Alan Walsh at the
CSIRO (Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization), Division of Chemical Physics, in
Melbourne,
Australia.
The technique makes use of absorption spectrometry to assess the
concentration of an analyte in a sample. It requires standards with
known analyte content to establish the relation between the measured
absorbance and the analyte concentration and relies therefore on the
Beer-Lambert Law.
In short, the electrons of the atoms in the atomizer can be promoted to
higher orbitals (excited state) for a short period of time
(nanoseconds) by absorbing a defined quantity of energy (radiation of a
given
wavelength).
This amount of energy, i.e., wavelength, is specific to a particular
electron transition in a particular element. In general, each wavelength
corresponds to only one element, and the width of an absorption line is
only of the order of a few picometers (pm), which gives the technique
its elemental selectivity. The
radiation flux
without a sample and with a sample in the atomizer is measured using a
detector, and the ratio between the two values (the absorbance) is
converted to analyte concentration or mass using the Beer-Lambert Law.
Atomic absorption spectrometer block diagram
In order to analyze a sample for its atomic constituents, it has to be
atomized. The atomizers most commonly used nowadays are flames and
electrothermal (graphite tube) atomizers. The atoms should then be
irradiated by optical radiation, and the radiation source could be an
element-specific line radiation source or a continuum radiation source.
The radiation then passes through a
monochromator
in order to separate the element-specific radiation from any other
radiation emitted by the radiation source, which is finally measured by a
detector.
The atomizers most commonly used nowadays are (spectroscopic) flames
and electrothermal (graphite tube) atomizers. Other atomizers, such as
glow-discharge atomization, hydride atomization, or cold-vapor
atomization might be used for special purposes.
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Flame atomizers
The oldest and most commonly used atomizers in AAS are flames,
principally the air-acetylene flame with a temperature of about 2300 °C
and the nitrous oxide (N
2O)-acetylene flame with a
temperature of about 2700 °C. The latter flame, in addition, offers a
more reducing environment, being ideally suited for analytes with high
affinity to oxygen.
A laboratory flame photometer that uses a propane operated flame atomizer
Liquid or dissolved samples are typically used with flame atomizers. The sample solution is aspirated by a pneumatic
analytical nebulizer, transformed into an
aerosol,
which is introduced into a spray chamber, where it is mixed with the
flame gases and conditioned in a way that only the finest aerosol
droplets (< 10 μm) enter the flame. This conditioning process is
responsible that only about 5% of the aspirated sample solution reaches
the flame, but it also guarantees a relatively high freedom from
interference.
On top of the spray chamber is a burner head that produces a flame
that is laterally long (usually 5–10 cm) and only a few mm deep. The
radiation beam passes through this flame at its longest axis, and the
flame gas flow-rates may be adjusted to produce the highest
concentration of free atoms. The burner height may also be adjusted, so
that the radiation beam passes through the zone of highest atom cloud
density in the flame, resulting in the highest sensitivity.
The processes in a flame include the following stages:
- Desolvation (drying) – the solvent is evaporated and the dry sample nano-particles remain;
- Vaporization (transfer to the gaseous phase) – the solid particles are converted into gaseous molecules;
- Atomization – the molecules are dissociated into free atoms;
- Ionization
– depending on the ionization potential of the analyte atoms and the
energy available in a particular flame, atoms might be in part converted
to gaseous ions.
Each of these stages includes the risk of interference in case the
degree of phase transfer is different for the analyte in the calibration
standard and in the sample. Ionization is generally undesirable, as it
reduces the number of atoms that is available for measurement, i.e., the
sensitivity. In flame AAS a steady-state signal is generated during the
time period when the sample is aspirated. This technique is typically
used for determinations in the mg L
-1 range, and may be extended down to a few μg L
-1 for some elements.
Electrothermal atomizers
Electrothermal AAS (ET AAS) using graphite tube atomizers was pioneered by Boris V. L’vov at the
Saint Petersburg Polytechnical Institute,
Russia, since the late 1950s, and further investigated by Hans Massmann
at the Institute of Spectrochemistry and Applied Spectroscopy (ISAS) in
Dortmund, Germany.
Although a wide variety of graphite tube designs have been used over
the years, the dimensions nowadays are typically 20–25 mm in length and
5–6 mm inner diameter. With this technique liquid/dissolved, solid and
gaseous samples may be analyzed directly. A measured volume (typically
10–50 μL) or a weighed mass (typically around 1 mg) of a solid sample
are introduced into the graphite tube and subject to a temperature
program. This typically consists of stages, such as:
- Drying – the solvent is evaporated
- Pyrolysis – the majority of the matrix constituents is removed
- Atomization – the analyte element is released to the gaseous phase
- Cleaning – eventual residues in the graphite tube are removed at high temperature.

The graphite tubes are heated via their ohmic resistance using a
low-voltage high-current power supply; the temperature in the individual
stages can be controlled very closely, and temperature ramps between
the individual stages facilitate separation of sample components. Tubes
may be heated transversely or longitudinally, where the former ones have
the advantage of a more homogeneous temperature distribution over their
length. The so-called
Stabilized Temperature Platform Furnace
(STPF) concept, proposed by Walter Slavin, based on research of Boris
L’vov, makes ET AAS essentially free from interference. The major
components of this concept are:
- Atomization of the sample from a graphite platform inserted into the
graphite tube (L’vov platform) instead of from the tube wall in order
to delay atomization until the gas phase in the atomizer has reached a
stable temperature;
- Use of a chemical modifier in order to stabilize the analyte to a
pyrolysis temperature that is sufficient to remove the majority of the
matrix components;
- Integration of the absorbance over the time of the transient
absorption signal instead of using peak height absorbance for
quantification.
In ET AAS a transient signal is generated, the area of which is
directly proportional to the mass of analyte (not its concentration)
introduced into the graphite tube. This technique has the advantage that
any kind of sample, solid, liquid or gaseous, can be analyzed directly.
Its sensitivity is 2–3 orders of magnitude higher than that of flame
AAS, so that determinations in the low μg L
-1 range (for a typical sample volume of 20 µL) and ng g
-1
range (for a typical sample mass of 1 mg) can be carried out. It shows a
very high degree of freedom from interferences, so that ET AAS might be
considered the most robust technique available nowadays for the
determination of trace elements in complex matrices.
Specialized Atomization Techniques
While flame and electrothermal vaporizers are the most common
atomization techniques, several other atomization methods are utilized
for specialized use.
Glow-Discharge Atomization
A glow-discharge (GD) device serves as a versatile source, as it can simultaneously introduce and atomize the sample. The
glow discharge occurs in a low-pressure argon gas atmosphere between 1 and 10 torr. In this atmosphere lies a pair of electrodes applying a
DC
voltage of 250 to 1000 V to break down the argon gas into positively
charged ions and electrons. These ions, under the influence of the
electric field, are accelerated into the cathode surface containing the
sample, bombarding the sample and causing neutral sample atom ejection
through the process known as
sputtering.
The atomic vapor produced by this discharge is composed of ions, ground
state atoms, and fraction of excited atoms. When the excited atoms
relax back into their ground state, a low-intensity glow is emitted,
giving the technique its name.
The requirement for samples of glow discharge atomizers is that they
are electrical conductors. Consequently, atomizers are most commonly
used in the analysis of metals and other conducting samples. However,
with proper modifications, it can be utilized to analyze liquid samples
as well as nonconducting materials by mixing them with a conductor (e.g.
graphite).
Hydride Atomization
Hydride generation techniques are specialized in solutions of
specific elements. The technique provides a means of introducing samples
containing arsenic, antimony, tin, selenium, bismuth, and lead into an
atomizer in the gas phase. With these elements, hydride atomization
enhances detection limits by a factor of 10 to 100 compared to
alternative methods. Hydride generation occurs by adding an acidified
aqueous solution of the sample to a 1% aqueous solution of sodium
borohydride, all of which is contained in a glass vessel. The volatile
hydride generated by the reaction that occurs is swept into the
atomization chamber by an inert gas, where it undergoes decomposition.
This process forms an atomized form of the analyte, which can then be
measured by absorption or emission spectrometry.
Cold-Vapor Atomization
The cold-vapor technique an atomization method limited to only the
determination of mercury, due to it being the only metallic element to
have a large enough vapor pressure at ambient temperature. Because of
this, it has an important use in determining organic mercury compounds
in samples and their distribution in the environment. The method
initiates by converting mercury into Hg
2+ by oxidation from nitric and sulfuric acids, followed by a reduction of Hg
2+ with
tin(II) chloride.
The mercury, is then swept into a long-pass absorption tube by bubbling
a stream of inert gas through the reaction mixture. The concentration
is determined by measuring the absorbance of this gas at 253.7 nm.
Detection limits for this technique are in the parts-per-billion range
making it an excellent mercury detection atomization method.
Applications of Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy
water analysis (e.g.Ca, Mg, Fe, Si, Al, Ba content)
food analysis
analysis of animal feedstuffs (e.g.Mn, Fe, Cu, Cr, Se,Zn)
analysis of additives in lubricating oils and greases (Ba,Ca, Na, Li, Zn, Mg)
analysis of soils
clinical analysis (blood samples: whole blood, plasma,
serum; Ca, Mg, Li, Na, K, Fe
A) Sample preparation
Depending on the
information required, total recoverable metals, dissolved metals, suspended metals,
and total metals could be obtained from a certain environmental matrix. Table 1
lists the EPA method number for sample processing in terms of the environmental
matrices and information required. For more detail information, readers could
refer to EPA document SW-846 "Test methods for evaluating solid wastes".
Table 1 EPA sample processing method for metallic element analysis
|
Analysis Target
|
Method Number
|
Environmental
Matrice
|
total recoverable
metals
|
3005
|
ground water/surface
water
|
dissolved metals
|
3005
|
ground
water/surface water
|
suspended metals
|
3005
|
ground
water/surface water
|
total metals
|
3010
|
aqueous samples,
wastes that contain suspended solids and mobility-procedure extracts
|
total metals
|
3015
|
aqueous samples,
wastes that contain suspended solids and mobility-procedure extracts
|
total metals
|
3020
|
aqueous samples,
wastes that contain suspended solids and mobility-procedure extracts
|
total metals
|
3050
|
sediments, sludges
and soil samples
|
total metals
|
3051
|
sludges, sediment,
soil and oil
|
Appropriate acid
digestion is employed in these methods. Hydrochloric acid digestion is not suitable
for samples, which will be analyzed by graphite furnace atomic absorption
spectroscopy because it can cause interferences during furnace atomization.
B) Calibration and
standard curves
As with other analytical
techniques, atomic absorption spectrometry requires careful calibration. EPA
QA/QC demands calibration through several steps including interference check
sample, calibration verification, calibration standards, bland control, and
linear dynamic range.
The idealized
calibration or standard curve is stated by Beer's law
that the absorbance of an absorbing analyte is proportional to its
concentration.
Unfortunately,
deviations from linearity usually occur, especially as the concentration of
metallic analytes increases due to various reasons, such as unabsorbed
radiation, stray light, or disproportionate decomposition of molecules at high
concentrations. Figure 3 shows an idealized and deviation of response curve.
The curvature could be minimized, although it is impossible to be avoided
completely. It is desirable to work in the linearity response range. The rule
of thumb is that a minimum of five standards and a blank should be prepared in
order to have sufficient information to fit the standard curve appropriately.
Manufacturers should be consulted if a manual curvature correction function is
available for a specific instrument.
Figure 3. Idealized/deviation
response curve
If the sample
concentration is too high to permit accurate analysis in linearity response
range, there are three alternatives that may help bring the absorbance into the
optimum working range:
1) sample
dilution
2)
using an alternative wavelength having a lower absorptivity
3)
reducing the path length by rotating the burner hand.
C) EPA method for metal
analysis
Flame atomic absorption
methods are referred to as direct aspiration determinations. They are normally
completed as single element analyses and are relatively free of interelement
spectral interferences. For some elements, the temperature or type of flame
used is critical. If flame and analytical conditions are not properly used,
chemical and ionization interferences can occur.
Graphite furnace atomic
absorption spectrometry replaces the flame with an electrically heated graphite
furnace. The major advantage of this technique is that the detection limit can
be extremely low. It is applicable for relatively clean samples, however,
interferences could be a real problem. It is important for the analyst to
establish a set of analytical protocol which is appropriate for the sample to
be analyzed and for the information required. Table 2 lists the available
method for different metal analysis provided in EPA manual SW-846.
Table 2. EPA methods for determination of metals by direct aspiration
|
Analyte
|
Method number
|
Analyte
|
Method number
|
Analyte
|
Method number
|
aluminum
|
7020
|
antimony
|
7040
|
barium
|
7080A
|
beryllium
|
7090
|
cadmium
|
7130
|
calcium
|
7140
|
chromium
|
7190
|
cobalt
|
7200
|
copper
|
7210
|
iron
|
7380
|
lead
|
7420
|
lithium
|
7430
|
magnesium
|
7450
|
manganese
|
7460
|
molybdenum
|
7480
|
nickel
|
7520
|
osmium
|
7550
|
potassium
|
7610
|
silver
|
7760A
|
sodium
|
7770
|
strontium
|
7780
|
thallium
|
7840
|
tin
|
7870
|
vanadium
|
7910
|
zinc
|
7951
|
|
|
|
|
D) Interferences
Since the concentration
of the analyte element is considered to be proportional to the ground state atom
population in the flame, any factor that affects the ground state population of
the analyte element can be classified as interference. Factors that may affect
the ability of the instrument to read this parameter can also be classified as
interference. The following are the most common interferences:
A) Spectral interferences
are due to radiation overlapping that of the light source. The interference
radiation may be an emission line of another element or compound, or general
background radiation from the flame, solvent, or analytical sample. This
usually occurs when using organic solvents, but can also happen when
determining sodium with magnesium present, iron with copper or iron with
nickel.
B) Formation of compounds
that do not dissociate in the flame. The most common example is the formation
of calcium and strontium phosphates.
C) Ionization of the
analyte reduces the signal. This is commonly happens to barium, calcium,
strontium, sodium and potassium.
D) Matrix interferences due
to differences between surface tension and viscosity of test solutions and
standards.
E) Broadening of a
spectral line, which can occur due to a number of factors. The most common line
width broadening effects are:
1. Doppler effect
This effect arises because atoms will have different
components of velocity along the line of observation.
2. Lorentz effect
This effect occurs as a result of the concentration of
foreign atoms present in the environment of the emitting or absorbing atoms.
The magnitude of the broadening varies with the pressure of the foreign gases
and their physical properties.
3. Quenching effect
In a low-pressure spectral source, quenching collision can
occur in flames as the result of the presence of foreign gas molecules with
vibration levels very close to the excited state of the resonance line.
4. Self absorption or self-reversal effect
The atoms of the same kind as that emitting radiation will
absorb maximum radiation at the center of the line than at the wings, resulting
in the change of shape of the line as well as its intensity. This effect
becomes serious if the vapor, which is absorbing radiation is considerably
cooler than that which is emitting radiation.
recap
Atomic
Absorption Spectroscopy
Introduction
Atomic absorption absorption spectroscopy
(AA or AAS) is one of the commonest instrumental methods for analyzing
for metals and some metalloids.
Metalloids like antimony, arsenic,
selenium, and tellurium are now routinely analyzed by hydride generation
AAS (HGAAS; see www.shsu.edu/~chm_tgc/sounds/sound.html and www.shsu.edu/~chemistry/primers for animations and primers on that
method). Inductively coupled plasma (ICP) is also a powerful analytical,
instrumental method for these elements but at this point its much higher
cost limits it widespread use as compared to AAS.
As the animation
on AAS here shows, the main parts of the AAS system are a hollow cathode
lamp, nebulizer, air/acetylene flame, and optical system. Alternate sample
introduction systems such as graphite furnaces are also available but will
not be discussed here. The job of each are detailed below:
Job of the hollow cathode lamp
Provide the analytical light
line for the element of interest
Provide a constant yet intense beam
of that analytical line
Job of the nebulizer
Suck up liquid sample at
a controlled rate
Create a fine aerosol for introduction
into the flame
Mix the aerosol and fuel and oxidant
thoroughly for introduction into the flame
Job of the flame
Destroy any analyte ions
and breakdown complexes
Create atoms (the elemental form)
of the element of interest
Fe0, Cu0,
Zn0, etc.
Job of the monochromator
Isolate analytical lines'
photons passing through the flame
Remove scattered light of other
wavelengths from the flame
In doing this, only a narrow spectral
line impinges on the PMT.
Job of the photomultiplier tube (PMT)
As the detector the PMT
determines the intensity of photons of the analytical line exiting the
monochromator.
The
Hollow Cathode Lamp
The hollow cathode lamp (HCL) uses
a cathode made of the element of interest with a low internal pressure
of an inert gas. A low electrical current (~ 10 mA) is imposed in such
a way that the metal is excited and emits a few spectral lines characteristic
of that element (for instance, Cu 324.7 nm and a couple of other lines;
Se 196 nm and other lines, etc.). The light is emitted directionally through
the lamp's window, a window made of a glass transparent in the UV and visible
wavelengths.
Neublizer,
Different Oxidants, and Burner Heads, and Waste
The nebulizer chamber thoroughly
mixes acetylene (the fuel) and oxidant (air or nitrous oxide), and by doing
so, creates a negative pressure at the end of the small diameter, plastic
nebulizer tube (not shown in adjacent figure; see figure below). This negative
pressure acts to suck ("uptake") liquid sample up the tube and into the
nebulizer chamber, a process called aspiration. A small glass impact bead
and/or a fixed impeller inside the chamber creates a heterogeneous mixture
of gases (fuel + oxidant) and suspended aerosol (finely dispersed sample).
This mixture flows immediately into the burner head where it burns as a
smooth, laminar flame evenly distributed along a narrow slot in the well-machined
metal burner head.
Liquid sample not flowing into the
flame collects on the bottom of the nebulizer chamber and flows by gravity
through a waste tube to a glass waste container (remember, this is still
highly acidic).
For some elements that form refractory
oxides (molecules hard to break down in the flame) nitrous oxide (N2O)
needs to be used instead of air (78% N2 + 21% O2)
for the oxidant. In that case, a slightly different burner head with a
shorter burner slot length is used.
The
Monochromator and PMT
Tuned to a specific wavelength and
with a specified slit width chosen, the monochromator isolates the hollow
cathode lamp's analytical line. Since the basis for the AAS process is
atomic ABSORPTION, the monochromator seeks to only allow the light not
absorbed by the analyte atoms in the flame to reach the PMT. That is, before
an analyte is aspirated, a measured signal is generated by the PMT as light
from the HCL passes through the flame. When analyte atoms are present in
the flame--while the sample is aspirated--some of that light is
absorbed by those atoms (remember it is not the ionic but elemental form
that absorbs). This causes a decrease in PMT signal that is proportional
to the amount of analyte. This last is true inside the linear range for
that element using that slit and that analytical line. The signal is therefore
a decrease in measure light: atomic absorption spectroscopy.
Acidic
Content and Oxidation State of Samples and Standards
The samples and standards are often prepared
with duplicate acid concentrations to replicate the analyte's chemical matrix
as closely as possible. Acid contents of 1% to 10% are common.
In addition, high acid concentrations
help keep all dissolved ions in solution.
The oxidation state of the analyte
metal or metalloid is important in AAS. For instance, AAS analysis of selenium
requires the Se(IV) oxidation state (selenite). Se(VI), the more highly
oxidized state of the element (selenate), responds erratically and non
reproducibly in the system. Therefore, all selenium in Se calibration standards
and Se containing samples must be in the Se(IV) form for analysis. This
can be accomplished by oxidizing all Se in the sample to selenate using
a strong oxidizer such as nitric acid or hydrogen peroxide and then reducing
the contained selenate to selenite with boiling HCl.
Double
Beam Instruments
The light from the HCL is split into
two paths using a rotating mirror: one pathway passes through the flame
and another around. Both beams are recombined in space so they both hit
the PMT but separated in time. The beams alternate quickly back and forth
along the two paths: one instant the PMT beam is split by the rotating
mirror and the sample beam passes through the flame and hits the PMT. The
next instance, the HCL beam passes through a hole in the mirror and passes
directly to the PMT without passing through the flame. The difference between
these beams is the amount of light absorbed by atoms in the flame.
The purpose of a double beam instrument
is to help compensate for drift of the output of the hollow cathode lamp
or PMT. If the HCL output drifts slowly the subtraction process described
immediately above will correct for this because both beams will drift equally
on the time scale of the analysis. Likewise if the PMT response changes
the double beam arrangement take this into account.
Ignition,
Flame conditions, and Shut Down
The process of lighting the AAS flame
involves turning on first the fuel then the oxidant and then lighting the
flame with the instrument's auto ignition system (a small flame or red-hot
glow plug). After only a few minutes the flame is stable. Deionized water
or a dilute acid solution can be aspirated between samples. An aqueous
solution with the correct amount of acid and no analyte is often used as
the blank.
Careful control of the fuel/air mixture
is important because each element's response depends on that mix in the
burning flame. Remember that the flame must breakdown the analyte's matrix
and reproducibly create the elemental form of the analyte atom. Optimization
is accomplished by aspirating a solution containing the element (with analyte
content about that of the middle of the linear response range) and then
adjusting the fuel/oxidant mix until the maximum light absorbance is achieved.
Also the position of the burned head and nebulizer uptake rate are similarly
"tuned." Most computer controlled systems can save variable settings so
that methods for different elements can be easily saved and reloaded.
Shut down involves aspirating deionized
water for a short period and then closing the fuel off first. Most modern
instruments control the ignition and shutdown procedures automatically.
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