Elemental composition of laser ablation aerosol particles deposited in the transport tube to an ICP

The element ratios in aerosol particles produced by laser ablation (lambda=266 nm, pulse length: 5 ns) of brass and steel in Ar and He and deposited in different segments of the transport tube to an ICP have been measured by ICP-MS. The data are compared with the ratios obtained by a corresponding bulk analysis. For brass, the element compositions of the aerosol particles deposited in different parts of the tube deviated from the bulk and varied along the tube. For steel, moderate agreement of the element ratios in the aerosols and the bulk was found. It is also shown that elemental ratios measured on-line by laser ablation ICP-MS with the laser-produced aerosol should not be calibrated by elemental ratios obtained with wet aerosols from aqueous solutions of the bulk. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.