Analytical method for small amount of polar snow and ice samples by ion chromatography

Abstract

Ion chromatography is one of the major methods for analyzing many kinds of anions and cations in a liquid solutions in a short time. In this time, we measured anions and cations in snow and ice collected in polar regions. The generally concentration is under 100μg/l. The accumulation rate of snow in most of the regions is very low. Therefore the samples were very small. The transportation of samples is sometimes so difficult that it is useful to decrease the amounts to analyze. We considered to analyze the very small samples containing very trace level concentration of ions in snow and ice in polar regions by ion chromatography. As a result, we could measure both anions and cations at about only 1.5ml. It was also possible to measure 8 kinds of ions (CH_3 COO^-, HCOO^-, C_2O_4^, CH_3SO_3^-, F^-, PO_4^, NO_2^- and NH_4^+) together with major 7 kinds of ions (Cl^-, NO_3^-, SO_4^, Na^+, K^+, Mg^, Ca^).