Rapid determination of selenium in soils and sediments using slurry sampling-electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry

An electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometric procedure for the rapid determination of selenium in soil and sediment samples is presented. The samples were suspended in concentrated (40% m/v) hydrofluoric acid containing 1% m/v nickel nitrate and then injected into the electrothermal atomizer. A fast heating programme, with no conventional ashing step, was used. Platform atomization at 2300 degrees C and Zeeman-effect background correction were used. Calibration was performed directly by using aqueous standards prepared in a 10% v/v hydrofluoric acid solution. The determination limit was 0.1 mu g g(-1) of selenium when using the maximum recommended slurry concentration of 10% m/v. The results obtained for five certified reference materials show the reliability of the procedures.