Vista del Valle/Harvey Mudd College Collaboration in Science, Mathematics, & Writing
(AA) is a technique to determine the amount of a given element in a sample. Over 62 different elements can be measured by AA. Briefly speaking, the sample is dissolved in water, then a small portion of the resulting solution is mixed with acetylene gas and burned in a flame. The color of light absorbed by the flame is measured, allowing us to identify the element and calculate the amount present. The Wikipedia has a good overview of this technique!
Look to see the flame in the center of the instrument! This is where we measure the lead content.
We have a brief movie showing the setup of our new instrument.
Finally, you can see a silly set of credits that show what can happen if you don't use the instrument correctly!
Harvey Mudd College | Chemistry
Department