Flow Injection Tutorial

All instrumental techniques that are designed to monitor fluids benefit from automation of sample processing by either FI or SI mode. Literature on this topic is vast, since each of 22,000 papers published so far involves a detection technique of some kind.

Spectrophotometry (Frenzel and McKelvie 2008) found the largest number of applications for its robustness, versatility, and high information content.

Next, fluorescence bio- and chemiluminescence (Francis and Hogan 2008) offer enhanced detection limits and sensitivity, being therefore especially favored for biological, biochemical, and trace analysis.

Atomic Spectroscopies (Hansen and Miró 2008) benefit enormously from automated sample pretreatment, used for matrix removal and analyte accumulation. Also, today,all AS assays based on metal hydride generation, are automated on line. Acceptance of FI as a tool for

Vibrational Spectroscopies (FTIR and Raman) had a slow start, yet it is

gaining acceptance as an emerging research area and a powerful tool for assay of a widevariety of inorganic, organic and biochemical species (Armenta, Garrigues and de la Guardia 2008).

While electrochemical techniques (Ivaska 2009) were the first to be incorporated into FI systems, and although enhancement of potentiometry and voltammetryhas been reported in a large number of papers, applications of electrochemical techniques (with the exception of pH, fluoride and conductivity measurements), seems to lack a wide application for real life assays.

The majority of instrumental methods have been enhanced by FI simply because this technique is easy to perform and has been around longer than SI. The question is if and when programmable flow will offer additional operational and economic advantages to instrumental techniques.

The methods discussed in this Tutorial and the followin examples will perhaps encourage further enquiry in this direction.

The above authors contributed corresponding chapters in: Advances In Flow Injection Analysis and Related Techniques, S.D.Kolev and I.D. McKelvie Elsevier 2008.