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The thermal decomposition technique employed by the DMA-80 (Direct Mercury Analyzer) is best exemplified in EPA Method 7473 for analysis of environmental samples. Part of SW-846, EPA 7473 was developed for the Office of Solid Waste (OSW) in conjunction with Skip Kingston's group at Duquesne University.
Standard mercury methods like Cold Vapor (CVAAS) involve lengthy sample pretreatment that can involve digestion and/or chemical oxidation, followed by chemical reduction of the mercury to its elemental state. Sample preparation can take several hours (more if dealing with a difficult matrix such as coal), and the analyst must dispose of the reagents according to EPA guidelines for solid and hazardous waste.
The DMA-80 analyzes samples directly, eliminating digestion, chemical pretreatment, and waste disposal. To summarize, the following is a list of key advantages of the thermal decomposition technique:
- Eliminates sample digestion step (sample is thermally decomposed)
- Eliminates chemical pretreatment step (mercury is reduced by the catalysts in the decomposition tube)
- Fast—approximately 5 minutes per sample
- Eliminates waste disposal (no reagents)
- Validated results (EPA 7473) for solid and liquid matrices
Mercury: See an overview, or view the DMA-80 product or technical details, or see our resource library of methods, application notes, and articles.
General: Go to the Milestone front page, or send us an inquiry.