Magnesium perchlorate as an alternative water trap in AMS graphite sample preparation; a report on sample preparation at KCCAMS at the University of California, Irvine.

Abstract

We present a brief discussion of sample preparation procedures at the Keck Carbon Cycle Accelerator Mass Spectrometer (KCCAMS), University of California, Irvine, and a systematic investigation of the use of Mg(ClO (sub 4) ) (sub 2) as an absorptive water trap, replacing the standard dry ice/ethanol cold finger in graphite sample preparation. We compare high-precision AMS measurement results from oxalic acid I and USGS coal samples using Mg(ClO (sub 4) ) (sub 2) under different conditions. The results obtained were also compared with those achieved using the conventional water removal technique. Final results demonstrate that the use of Mg(ClO (sub 4) ) (sub 2) as an alternative water trap seems very convenient and reliable, provided the Mg(ClO (sub 4) ) (sub 2) is replaced frequently.