Determination of Trace Elements (Ag, B, Ge, Mo, Sn, W, Tl) in Reference Samples of Soils and Bottom Sediments by Atomic Emission Spectrometry: A Traceability and Fitness‐for‐Purpose Study

Reference samples of soils from the Institute of Applied Physics, Irkutsk (RIAP), the Institute of Geochemistry, Irkutsk (IGI) and the United States Geological Survey, Reston (USGS) were analysed with the aim of determining Ag, B, Ge, Mo, Sn, Tl and W abundances by an atomic emission method with air‐stabilised D.C. arc excitation. Two series of reference samples of soils and bottom sediments, GSS‐1‐8 and GSD‐1‐12 (IGGE), were used to ensure the traceability link for the analytical results. Traceability was also demonstrated through the comparison of measured results by AES and ICP‐MS methods. It is shown that the reference samples GSS‐1‐8 and GSD‐1‐12 satisfied the “fitness‐for‐purpose” criterion (uncertainty U of the certified value should be one‐third to one‐tenth the magnitude of routine laboratory data uncertainty S (S/U > 3‐10)) and can be applied for calibrating AES techniques.