The determination of tellurium in leaded free-cutting steels by atomic-absorption spectrometry

A procedure is presented for the determination of tellurium within the range 0·005–0·08 per cent., with solvent conditions that permit its incorporation in a composite scheme that includes lead. In the preferred fuel-rich flame the background absorbance of iron and inter-element interferences are at a minimum.Good recoveries of tellurium when added to solutions of leaded and stainless steels, together with satisfactory reproducibilities for samples and good agreements with results by the slower turbidimetric procedure, are shown.