As one of the key raw materials of lithium-ion (Li) batteries, ensuring the quality of lithium carbonate (Li2CO3) is key, where even small amounts of impurities in Li2CO3 can affect the characteristics of the battery.
Inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES) is a widely used technique for this application thanks to its multi-element analysis capabilities, low detection limits, and high matrix tolerance. However, the main challenge when measuring samples with high levels of lithium salts is the easily ionizable element (EIE) effect, since Li has a low ionization potential which can affect the signal of other elements that have low ionization potentials, causing inaccurate results. In addition, robustness of the instrument is needed for the analysis of a large number of lithium matrix samples.
This work presents a method for accurate and robust impurity analysis in Li2CO3 samples to meet the requirements of China standard YS/T 546-2021 using the Avio® 550 Max fully simultaneous ICP-OES, providing excellent detection limits, accuracy, and stability.