Extension Of The Linear Dynamic Range For High Resolution Continuum Source Atomic Absorption Spectrometry And Its Application In The Analysis Of Biological Samples

Recently, traditional electro-thermal atomic absorption spectrometry has lost its popularity to other multi-element spectrometric techniques. Limited linear determination range, which is usually two orders of magnitude, is one of the reasons for the loss. As a result, tens of calibration standards and diluted samples have become an indispensable part of the electro-thermal atomic absorption spectrometric analysis, particularly if numerous samples containing a broad concentration range of analytes are to be analysed. The objective of this work was to establish the mechanism of absorption signals for high concentrations of analyte atoms in the absorption volume. Secondly, to employ the findings for HR-CS ET-AAS data quantification, within a broad range of analyte concentrations. It was expected that the sought algorithm would permit the use of the most sensitive analytical lines or those less prone to interferences, independent of the concentration of the respective analyte in the sample.