Stability evaluation of alkali metal standard solutions by using precise ion chromatography

Mass fractions of alkali metal (Li, Na, K, Rb, Cs) standard solutions (1000 mg/kg) were measured with about 0.1% relative standard deviation by improving the method of injection in ion chromatography (IC). This technique was applied to stability testing of the standard solutions. After storage of each alkali metal standard solution for 18 months, an increase of the mass fraction was observed, for all the alkali metal ions, of approximately 0.15% per year at 25 °C and approximately 0.02% per year at 5 °C. The observed increase of the mass fraction can be explained by the weight loss of the solution during storage. The deviation between the mass fraction measured by IC and the preparation mass fraction after correcting the weight loss for solvent evaporation was within ±0.05% for every alkali metal ion. It is concluded that alkali metal standard solutions of 1000 mg/kg are basically stable for more than 18 months under these storage conditions and that correction for evaporation is effective if weight monitoring of each bottle is performed precisely.