Patent ID: 7285419

Claim:
A method for mercury analysis of a sample, comprising: fractionating the sample comprising inorganic mercury and organic mercury species on a cation exchange resin, to produce a first fraction comprising organic mercury species and a second fraction comprising inorganic mercury species; oxidizing the first fraction to inorganic mercury; reducing the first fraction to elemental mercury; reducing the second fraction to elemental mercury; volatilizing the first fraction; volatilizing the second fraction; quantifying mercury content present in the first fraction; and quantifying mercury content present in the second fraction; wherein the first fraction is separated from the second fraction; wherein fractionating comprises: absorbing the sample on the cation exchange resin under conditions that promote retention of inorganic mercury and organic mercury species on the cation exchange resin; washing the cation exchange resin to remove at least one non-mercury contaminant of the sample from the cation exchange resin without simultaneously removing mercury content of the sample from the cation exchange resin; and eluting inorganic mercury and organic mercury species in separate fractions from the cation exchange resin; wherein the eluting is carried out with an aqueous eluent comprising a bifunctional moiety and a source of protons.