Low-level Mercury Analysis

Alpha Analytical utilizes cold vapor atomic fluorescence instrumentation for the analysis of mercury in sediment and tissue samples. Atomic fluorescence is an extremely sensitive measurement technique for the analysis of mercury. Mercury in a digested sample is reduced with stannous chloride to elemental mercury and purged from the seawater matrix for analysis. The sensitivity of the analysis can be varied by adjusting the instrumental gain.

Alpha analyzes samples by EPA Method 7474, or EPA Method 1631, depending on the project application and project detection limits. EPA Method 1631 has a gold amalgamation pre-concentration procedure that greatly maximizes sensitivity and minimizes interferences.