A new low memory effect device for Os micro-distillation

This paper reports a new Os micro-distillation device made of glass. We call this glassware a glass conical vial (GCV). The bottom and cover top of the GVC are designed to be pointed in order to hold small droplets of <20 mu l. The recovery of Os exceeded 93% after micr-odistillation of solutions containing as low as 0.6 ng of Os using GCVs. A simple HNO3-H2O-baking procedure to clean the used GCV resulted in background levels of Os and Re below 0.37 and 0.36 pg, respectively, even though micro-distilled solutions in the GCV contained up to 750 ng or 350 ng of Os or Re, respectively. The new device has the advantages of high Os recovery, low Os and Re background, and easy cleaning, and is especially suitable for micro-distillation of samples with a low Os content.