Using Nitrous Oxide for Nitrogen Isotope Analysis
Author Information
Author(s): R. L. Mulvaney, S. A. Khan, G. K. Sims, W. B. Stevens
Primary Institution: University of Illinois
Hypothesis
Can nitrous oxide be used as a purge gas in automated nitrogen isotope analysis without affecting analytical performance?
Conclusion
The use of nitrous oxide as a purge gas did not affect the analytical performance of the automated nitrogen isotope analysis.
Supporting Evidence
- Analytical performance was unaffected by the modifications made to use nitrous oxide.
- Automated analyses of 20 µg of nitrogen were accurate to within 2%.
- Up to 768 samples can be processed in a single loading.
Takeaway
This study shows that we can use nitrous oxide instead of Freon to clean air from samples before testing nitrogen, and it works just as well.
Methodology
The study involved modifying an automated nitrogen isotope analysis apparatus to use nitrous oxide as a purge gas and evaluating its performance against traditional methods.
Limitations
The study does not address long-term effects or potential interferences from nitrous oxide in the analysis.
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