Determination of sulphur in coal products by inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry

Abstract

A method for the determination of both the soluble and total sulphur in coal products has been devised. The procedure adopted for extracting the soluble sulphates from test materials was based on refluxing samples with hot, dilute HCl and H₂O₂, whereas the total sulphur content could be quantified after combustion with V₂O₅ in an O₂ flow. The analytical determinations were accomplished by using inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry. The reproducibility (on average between 3.8 and 1.4%), linear dynamic range (4–5 orders of magnitude) and detection power (1 µg g^–1 of sample) were found to be more than adequate for the stated purpose, thus providing a flexible and convenient tool for the determination of sulphur in coal and fly ash.