Elemental Analysis
Instructions for Submitting Samples

1. Samples must be submitted by noon on Wednesday. Samples are normally run on Thursday or Friday; expect the results to be returned to you by Friday.
2. If less than five samples are submitted for CHN (or five samples submitted for CHNS), the weekly run may be cancelled. Speak to me in advance if you have special needs.
3. Approximately two milligrams of sample are required for each run. Sufficient excess should be submitted to ensure that sample transfer can be accomplished easily. The physical nature of your sample and the vial will determine this. You may retrieve your excess sample when the analysis is finished.
4. Samples must be completely pure and completely dry. It is preferable for you to powder your sample rather than submit large "chunks".
5. Oils, pastes, and liquids can be accommodated with some difficulty. Submit considerable excess.
6. Please list any special combustion conditions for your compounds referenced in the literature or in technical notes. Un-referenced comments will be ignored. The default combustion conditions should work for greater than 90% of all samples.
7. Unexpected results based upon only one sample run will not be discussed. Two runs are required to verify the precision of the measurement.
8. Normally the CHN combustion tube will be used for CHN samples, but occasionally the CHNS tube may be used for CHN samples. It is designed for this purpose. If you know the CHNS tube will not work for your CHN samples, please let me know.
9. It is not necessary to tell me the formula of your sample; it can be treated as an "unknown" if you wish.