Significance and Use
The metallurgical properties of aluminum and its alloys are highly dependent on chemical composition. Precise and accurate analyses are essential to obtaining desired properties, meeting customer specifications and helping to reduce scrap due to off-grade material.
This test method is applicable to chill cast specimens as defined in Practice E716 and can also be applied to other types of samples provided that suitable reference materials are available. Also, other sample forms can be melted-down and cast into a disk, using an appropriate mold, as described in Practice E716. However, it should be noted that some elements (for example, magnesium) readily form oxides, while some others (for example, sodium, lithium, calcium, and strontium) are volatile, and may be lost to varying degrees during the melting process.
1. Scope
1.1 This test method describes the analysis of aluminum and its alloys by atomic emission spectrometry. The aluminum specimen to be analyzed may be in the form of a chill cast disk, casting, foil, sheet, plate, extrusion or some other wrought form or shape. The elements covered in the scope of this method are listed in the table below.
2. Referenced Documents (purchase separately) 
The documents listed below are referenced within the subject standard but are not provided as part of the standard.
ASTM Standards
E135 Terminology Relating to Analytical Chemistry for Metals, Ores, and Related Materials
E158 Practice for Fundamental Calculations to Convert Intensities into Concentrations in Optical Emission Spectrochemical Analysis
E172 Practice for Describing and Specifying the Excitation Source in Emission Spectrochemical Analysis
E305 Practice for Establishing and Controlling Atomic Emission Spectrochemical Analytical Curves
E406 Practice for Using Controlled Atmospheres in Spectrochemical Analysis
E691 Practice for Conducting an Interlaboratory Study to Determine the Precision of a Test Method
E716 Practices for Sampling Aluminum and Aluminum Alloys for Spectrochemical Analysis
E826 Practice for Testing Homogeneity of a Metal Lot or Batch in Solid Form by Spark Atomic Emission Spectrometry
E876 Practice for Use of Statistics in the Evaluation of Spectrometric Data
E1329 Practice for Verification and Use of Control Charts in Spectrochemical Analysis
E1507 Guide for Describing and Specifying the Spectrometer of an Optical Emission Direct-Reading Instrument
Index Terms
aluminum; aluminum alloys; Spark Atomic Emission Spectrometry (Spark-AES); Aluminum alloys--spectrochemical analysis; Aluminum (spectrochemical analysis); Argon atmospheres; Calibration--spectrochemical analysis instrumentation; Capacitor discharge; Excitation; Gas flow; Optical emission spectrometry (OES); Point-to-point technique; Unipolar self-initiating capacitor discharge;
ICS Code
ICS Number Code 77.120.10 (Aluminium and aluminium alloys)
DOI: 10.1520/E1251-11
ASTM International is a member of CrossRef.
Citing ASTM Standards
[Back to Top]
