Quantitative spectrographic analysis of the rare earth elements—X: Determination of rare earth impurities commonly associated with purified thulium, ytterbium, lutetium and scandium

Abstract

Emission-spectrometric methods are described for the following quantitative determinations: yttrium, holmium, erbium, ytterbium and lutetium in thulium; samarium, yttrium, erbium, thulium, lutetium and scandium in ytterbium; yttrium, thulium, ytterbium and lutetium in scandium. The basic method involves the d.c. carbon arc excitation of rare earth oxide-graphite mixtures. In all cases the percent deviation from the mean is less than ± 5 per cent.