9 Influencia de la composición del suelo en la determinación de cromo por espectrometría de absorción atómica con llama aire/acetileno

Abstract

The Air-acetylene Flame Atomic Absorption determination of chromium is a complex task, being strongly influenced by sample composition and instrumental conditions. The objective of this work was to study the influence of Al, Ca, Fe, K, Mg, and Na on the absorption of chromium in the air-acetylene flame, both separately and combined in solution, when acetylene flow and burner height vary. Dissolutions of the mixtures simulated the composition of four soils from the Quibú River Basin in Havana, Cuba. Chromium absorption first increased and then decreased with increment of acetylene flow for shorter burner heights (~ 2 - 4 mm); while a continuous increase was observed for larger heights (> 4 mm). This behavior was the same in the presence and absence of interfering chemical element, mentioned above. On the other hand, the dependence of the magnitude of the interference with acetylene flow and burner height was complex and dependent on the interfering element, particularly at larger heights where the behavior of Al was remarkably different. The interference of the four mixtures of Al, Ca, K, Fe, Mg and Na decreased in comparison to individual interfering effects and was less dependent on acetylene flow and burner height. Finally, a significant reduction of interference on chromium determination in soil samples was achieved by an adequate selection of acetylene flow and burner height.