Auomated analysis of nutrients in seawater with the technicon TRAACS-800 autoanalyzer system

Abstract

During 1987-88, we adapted methods for automated analyses of nutrients by Technicon's newest generation industrial autoanalyzer so that the TrAAcs-800 could be used to analyze low levels of nutrients in open-ocean water. The TrAAcs-800 system runs three to five times more samples with longer steady states and better separation between peaks than can older generation autoanalyzer systems like our Technicon AA-I1 or our Alpkem IWA-6. On completion of a run the TrAAcs operating program automatically calculates sample concentrations from the linear regression slope obtained from the standards which are run and corrects for baseline drift, changes in absorbance, and carry-over.