Elemental Microanalysis

Elemental Microanalysis is the specialist discipline for the determination of major constituents in a material using milligram amounts of sample. In particular, and historically, it is associated with the determination of carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen and sulfur in organic compounds.

Elemental Microanalysis is a fast, accurate and cost-effective technique that can provide crucial information on the purity and composition of many types of materials, such as routine QC samples, reaction intermediates, and new and novel research materials. Overall purity may be assessed, syntheses monitored and if other elements such as halogens (fluorine, chlorine, bromine and iodine) and phosphorus are determined, an overall picture of a compound may be derived. By analysing for metals and other inorganic elements, potential characterisation errors associated with NMR and Mass Spectrometry can often be avoided.

The instrumentation available at Butterworth includes:

• Leeman CE440 CHN Analyser
• Leco 932 CHNS Analyser
• Antek Nitrogen Chemiluminescence Analyser

Halogens are routinely analysed by Ion Chromatography following oxygen combustion. Phosphorus, boron and other elements (including metals) can be analysed by ICP-OES or AAS.