Trace anion analysis of high purity water is an important application for the semiconductor, disk drive, electronic components, and nuclear power industries. The measurement of trace levels of ionic impurities throughout the power generation process is critical for the identification and prevention of corrosive conditions in many power plant components. Corrosive ions such as chloride and sulfate should be minimized and continuously monitored. Ion chromatography (IC) has become an important technique for monitoring water quality and for the determination of ionic species that can be corrosive. In this work, we describe the use of an IC system that prepares its eluents electrolytically, and an anion-exchange column that delivers improved resolution of small organic acid anions and inorganic anions for trace-level anion analysis. The electrolytic generation of hydroxide eluents ensures they are carbonate-free and thus improves method performance for determination of the target analytes at trace levels. The high resolution provides better peak identification and high capacity allows injection of larger volume samples without overloading the column. Figure 1 displays a chromatogram demonstrating the separation of twelve anions at sub-μg/L concentrations using a 0.5 mL large-loop direct injection on the 2 mm diameter column. The method demonstrated good linearity, sub- μg/L detection limits, and good precision for the target anions; and therefore, meets the needs of high purity water analysis.

Separation and determination of trace anions in high purity waters by ion chromatography

ACS Fall 2021

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