2.4  General Operation of FAAS and FAES Instruments

Basic sample preparation will be discussed in Chapter 6, the experimental section of this Etextbook. For most FAAS and FAES measurements aqueous samples are required. Once samples are prepared, which can take hours, the instrument is prepared for operation. Instrument setup usually requires:

-checking the fuel and oxidant gas pressures and flow rates
-turning on the instrument and lamp (and aligning it, and allowing the electronics to warm up and stabilize for at least ten minutes),
-checking the drainage system to ensure waste flow,
-lighting the flame and allow it to thermally stabilize for five to ten minutes,
-adjusting (“balancing”) the electronics (this is automatically preformed on most modern instruments)
-testing the stability of the signal,
-loading the method and creating a sequence for the samples
-starting the sequence

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