[lespaul]

Hi everyone,

Our lab is looking to analyze drinking water primarily for Ca and Mg. I know most of these type of elemental analysis are done via flame atomic absorption (FAA), however we already have a HPLC and I was thinking we could configure it for ion-chromatography (IC).

My question is can I perform the same analysis using HPLC-IC instead of FAA? What are the pros/cons to using HPLC-IC over FAA and vice-versa?

I'm just wondering if we should invest in an AA or simply reconfigure our HPLC-IC for this. I know elements have no UV chromophore so we would likely have to use conductivity detector (I'm assuming).

Any input if greatly appreciated.

Thanks

[hypervalent_iodine]

I believe you can if you get a conductivity detector and use appropriate columns. I am not sure what the LOD would be on that compared to an AA. One concern you may wish to think about is the lines you have on the HPLC and the eluents you plan on using. You may run into issues of contamination and corrosion since you are looking at metal ions. You could contact your local application specialist for the brand of HPLC you have and see what they say.

[Corribus]

If you're serious about metal analysis, I'd invest in AA or better yet, ICP. Which one you invest in will depend on sensitivity and throughput needs as well as cost of course.

[wildfyr]

IC uses conductivity, whereas HPLC usually uses some sort of optical detection (i.e UV-Vis). IC's are typically custom built for the job. My IC looks almost nothing like my HPLC.

https://www.metrohm.com/~/media/metrohm%20hq/470x265/compact-ic-flex-with-sample-changer.jpg?h=265&la&w=470. One major difference Is the way the eluents are flowed in, and also a supressor module for capturing contaminents http://ic-help.metrohm.com/maintenance.php?chapter=7_1

They are definitely cheaper than a new ICP, but perhaps on par with flame AA? I didn't buy mine.