The use of pre-mixed nitric and hydrofluoric acids for the decomposition of samples containing high amounts of Si can cause the precipitation of Al(III), Ca(II), Fe(III), and Mg(II) fluorides during digestion, reducing the total recovery of these elements. Four procedures were applied to certified soil samples in an attempt to circumvent this problem. The most efficient procedure was based on microwave-assisted acid digestion decomposition of the samples, followed by separation of the residual silicate compounds. This fraction was solubilized using concentrated HF and the remaining fluoride ions were complexed by adding boric acid. This solution was mixed with the liquid phase of the acid digest. Elemental analysis of the acid digests was performed by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES). The accuracy of the procedure was confirmed by applying it to samples provided by the International Soil-Analytical Exchange (ISE- Wageningen Agricultural University, Netherlands) and to certified soil reference material from the National Institute of Standards & Technology (NIST, SRM 2709). The following elemental recovery (%) was obtained: 100.0 ± 2.6; 99.5 ± 1.9; 108.5 ± 2.7; 94.6 ± 8.9; 92.2 ± 9.7; 95.7 ± 1.8; 96.7 ± 2.7; 95.2 ± 0.6; 103.6 ± 2.6 and 96.1 ± 1.6 for Al, Ba, Ca, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mg, Mn, V, and Zn, respectively.
soil digestion; soil analysis; hydrofluoric acid; soil
