The coating of the graphite furnace surface with refractory metal salts Increases the atomization efficiency of tin. The use of zlrconyl acetate Improves the atomization of tin, selenium, and arsenic. The treated surface shows granules containing zirconium. The zirconium concentration on the Inside of the tube decreases with Increasing atomizations. The uniformity of the zirconium-treated surface is compared to treatment with sodium salts of molybdate and tungstate.

The chemical digestion of organometallics containing lead and tin is induced in the graphite cuvette of an atomic absorption spectrometer. The metal-containing components are digested and analyzed after the molecular species are separated by reversed phase liquid chromatography. The five lead species, tetramethyl-, trimethylethyl-, dimethyldiethyl-, methyltriethyl-, and tetraethyllead, are analyzed by using the peak storage sampling method and are digested with methanolic iodine. The organotin compounds analyzed include tetrapropyl-, tetrabutyl-, tetraphenyl-, and dibutyldichlorotin. These tin compounds are decomposed in the graphite furnace by the zirconium-treated surface of the cuvette. The application of these procedures to reduce species-dependent sensitivity in atomic absorption analysis of liquid chromatographic eluents is discussed.

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