Biodiesel Analysis for Inorganic Contaminants Using the Optima 8000 ICP-OES with Flat Plate Plasma Technology

The presence of elements such as calcium, magnesium, sodium and potassium in biodiesel and biodiesel blends is problematic for combustion engines as they many adversely affect the quality of the fuel, engine wear or emissions. In addition phosphorus and sulfur are potential catalyst poisons for emission control systems utilizing catalytic converters. The maximum permissible limits for these elements are specified in ASTM D6751. This application note demonstrates that the PerkinElmer Optima 8000 ICP-OES with Flat Plate plasma technology is particularly well suited for the analysis of organic samples such as biodiesel.