Due to aluminum’s varied uses and popularity, there are many grades available. The London Metal Exchange (LME) lists specifications for two commonly-used aluminum (Al) purities: 99.5% and 99.7%1, with each having up to six inorganic impurities specified. ICP-OES is the best technique for measuring these impurities at these levels due to its ability to easily handle high-matrix samples and simplicity of operation.
This work describes the analysis of impurities in Al at the LME specifications using the Avio® 220 Max hybrid simultaneous ICP-OES, an ideal choice for this application – its optical design provides excellent light throughput, essential for measuring lower concentrations with shorter analytical times, plus, its charge-coupled device (CCD detector) provides simultaneous background and analyte measurement, important for samples such as metal matrices.