Abstract：To reduce the limit of detection (LOD) and allow the accurate determination of Ge, a dry ashing method was performed to enrich the Ge in plant samples. A method for the determination of trace Ge in plant samples by HG-AFS was established. Study of the effect of temperature on the ashing of plant samples showed that no volatile loss of Ge occurred even at 900 ℃. Additional experiments indicated that a 4 h burning process at 600 ℃ would be sufficient to fully ash the plant samples. Various digestion methods (involving nitric acid, hydrofluoric acid, and sulfuric acid digestion methods) for ashed samples were investigated. High-temperature ashing with large sample weights was used, which could reduce the reagent doses and the method’s LOD effectively and simultaneously, the precision of the method was improved. The method’s LOD was 0.27 ng·g-1, and the relative standard deviation was 3.99%～6.81%. Verified with national biological reference materials (grade Ⅰ), the proposed method was accurate and reliable.
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