ABSTRACT
In this recently developed multi-element technique, positive ions generated in an inductively coupled plasma (Box 4.2) are extracted, via a differentially pumped air-vacuum interface, into a low-resolution mass analyser designed to scan a wide mass spectrum very rapidly. This provides near-simultaneous determination of most elements in the periodic table at levels down to 10 pg ml−1. ICP-MS, although expensive in terms of capital outlay (£160,000), provides a rapid and very versatile means of trace element analysis of solutions, slurries and even solid samples over a wide concentration range (Houk and Thompson, 1988).
