Influence of the nature of organic phase emulsions on sensitivity in atomic-absorption determinations.

The influence of the nature of organic phase emulsions on sensitivity in atomic-absorption determinations has been studied for the copper-APDC chelate extracted into various solvents. Oil-in-water emulsions containing 10% of organic phase emulsified with non-ionic and anionic surfactants were introduced into the flame and the atomic-absorption of copper was measured. An attempt was made to relate the effect on sensitivity to the physical properties of the different emulsions but no correlation was found. Rheological properties such as aspiration rate and nebulization efficiency did not differ significantly for different emulsified organic solvents. Enrichment of the waste solution proved the most important parameter for predicting an increase in sensitivity.