METHOD OF QUANTITATIVELY MEASURING TRACE AMOUNTS OF METALS IN POLYMER SAMPLES

摘要

A method of quantitatively measuring (50) trace amounts of metals in polymer samples using x-rays to fluoresce and detect metals that are present in the polymer sample is disclosed. The polymer sample is ground (10) to a powder and formed into a thin film (20) by heat and pressure. The film is then analyzed (30) using energy dispersive x-ray fluorescence spectrometry, and the data (40) representing the amounts of the various metals present in the sample is multiplied by one or more correlation factors that have been determined from measurement of characterized polymers that have similar composition to the polymer sample and that bracket a range of metal concentrations in the sample.