The laboratory is dedicated to the quantitative determination of total, organic and inorganic carbon contents in geological materials. Analyses are performed using a Ströhlein C-MAT 5500 automatic infrared detector.

 

Methodology.

  1. Approximately 0.05 g of sample (pulverized and dried at 110°C) is continuously burned down in the oxygen atmosphere at the temperature range 50 – 1000°C. The CO2 produced during combustion is detected by the C-MAT 5500 infrared detector and obtained values and converted to total carbon content (TC).
  2. Another split of sample is treated with hot HCl in order to dissolve carbonates. The insoluble residue is analyzed again to obtain total organic carbon content (TOC).
  3. The total inorganic carbon (TIC) is calculated as follows: TIC = TC – TOC.

The accuracy of measurements is controlled with world standards. Standard deviations determined for different carbon content intervals are as follows:

Interval of C content in wt. %

Standard deviation (wt. %)

0 - 1

0.08

1 - 3

0.07

3 - 10

0.10

10 - 16

0.22

16 - 100

2.28
Contact person:

RNDr. Adrian Biroň, CSc.

+421 48 321 3211
ks.b1575900322bvas@1575900322norib1575900322

 

Laboratory staff:

Alžbeta Svitáčová
Stanislava Budačová

 

Workplace:

Banská Bystrica, Ďumbierska 1, Geological Division