Gipronickel Institute LLC., St. Petersburg, Russia

T. I. Velikaya, Chief Specialist, Testing Analytical Center, e-mail: VelikayaTI@nornik.ru
N. P. Shikhareva, Sector`s Head, e-mail: ShikharevaNP@nornik.ru
E. S. Poslavskaya, Leading Engineer, Testing Analytical Center, e-mail: PoslavskayaES@nornik.ru
V. A. Yakushkina, Leading Engineer, Testing Analytical Center, e-mail: YakushkinaVA@nornik.ru

The method of inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectrometry (ICP–AES) in combination with calibration by bracketing technique ensures high accuracy of determination of macroelements comparable with classical methods of analysis: gravimetry, electrogravimetry, titrimetry. The ICP–AES method with calibration by bracketing technique allows to exclude the drift of spectrometer intensities. In addition, the exclusion of calibration error helps to obtain more reproducible and accurate results compared to the results usually obtained by the ICP–AES method. Replacement of classical analytical methods with methods using ICP–AES has recently become one of the main trends in the development of analytical laboratories. The application of the ICP–AES method in combination with calibration by bracketing technique for determination of copper and nickel in copper-nickel converter matte was studied. The conditions for dissolving the converter matte and the optimal parameters of spectrometer measurements were selected. Scandium was used as an internal standard. The obtained metrological characteristics for determining copper and nickel contents in the mass fraction range from 20 to 70% are not inferior to ones of electrogravimetry. The ICP–AES method with calibration by bracketing technique has the following advantages: the duration of analysis, labor costs and emission of harmful substances into the laboratory atmosphere are significantly reduced, there is no need to use platinum gauzes. Based on the collected statistical data, a comparison of the accuracy characteristics of the results obtained by AES–ISP with calibration by bracketing technique and electrogravimetric determination of copper and nickel in converter matte and its separation products was carried out. A method for determining copper and nickel by ICP–AES with calibration by bracketing technique was developed. The correctness of the developed method was confirmed by the analysis of standard samples of converter matte.

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