Dissolution for the analysis of alloys containing boron by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry

This paper presents dissolution methods of several B-containing alloys to determine the amounts of B accurately by ICP-OES. It should be principally noted that boron is easily volatilized when the samples are dissolved in acid solutions, which may cause a serious error of the analytical result. Fe-B, Mn-Al-B, and Al-Pd-Mn-B alloy samples (30 mg) were dissolved in TEFE beakers by heating in 25 ml of an acid mixture: H₃PO₄ : HNO ₃ : HCl : H₂O = 1 : 2 : 2 : 5. A Nd-Fe-B- Si alloy sample (100 mg) was dissolved in a TEFE beaker by heating in 30 ml of an acid mixture: H₃PO₄ : HNO₃ : HCl : H₂O = 1 : 2 : 2 : 5 and 4 ml of NaOH solution (8 mg/ml). The NaOH addition can prevent Si in the solution from precipitating because silicic acid can be dissolved in alkaline solutions. An Fe-Co-Nd-B alloy sample (30 mg) was dissolved in a TEFE beaker by heating in 30 ml of an acid mixture : HNO₃ : guliceline : H₂O = 15 : 0.3 : 14.7. A Nb-B alloy sample (100 mg) was dissolved in a polypropylene flask in 30 ml of HNO₃ (1 + 1) and 2 ml of HF at room temperature. An Fe-Zr-Co-Ni-B sample (50 mg) was dissolved in a polypropylene flask in 35 ml of an acid mixture: HNO₃ : HF : guliceline : H ₂O = 15 : 2 : 0.1 : 17.9 at room temperature. Ni-Al-Hf-B and Ni-Al-Ta-B alloy samples (40 mg) were dissolved in a TEFE beaker by heating in 35 ml of an acid mixture: HNO₃ : HF : H₂O = 15 : 2 : 18 and 5 ml of mannitol (1 w/v%).