A fast and accurate microwave-assisted digestion method for arsenic determination in complex mining residues by flame atomic absorption spectrometry

Fernando L Pantuzzo; Julio César J Silva; Virginia S T Ciminelli

doi:10.1016/j.jhazmat.2009.03.005

A fast and accurate microwave-assisted digestion method for arsenic determination in complex mining residues by flame atomic absorption spectrometry

J Hazard Mater. 2009 Sep 15;168(2-3):1636-8. doi: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2009.03.005. Epub 2009 Mar 13.

Authors

Fernando L Pantuzzo¹, Julio César J Silva, Virginia S T Ciminelli

Affiliation

¹ Dept of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil.

PMID: 19345010
DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2009.03.005

Abstract

A fast and accurate microwave-assisted digestion method for arsenic determination by flame atomic absorption spectrometry (FAAS) in typical, complex residues from gold mining is presented. Three digestion methods were evaluated: an open vessel digestion using a mixture of HCl:HNO(3):HF acids (Method A) and two microwave digestion methods using a mixture of HCl:H(2)O(2):HNO(3) in high (Method B) and medium-pressure (Method C) vessels. The matrix effect was also investigated. Arsenic concentration from external and standard addition calibration curves (at a 95% confidence level) were statistically equal (p-value=0.122) using microwave digestion in high-pressure vessel. The results from the open vessel digestion were statistically different (p-value=0.007) whereas in the microwave digestion in medium-pressure vessel (Method C) the dissolution of the samples was incomplete.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Arsenic / analysis*
Microwaves*
Mining*
Spectrophotometry, Atomic / methods*

Substances

Arsenic