
Instruction Manual
Potassium Electrode
14
Meter
The meter may be checked by following the checkout procedure in the instrument instruction
manual.
Glassware
Clean glassware is essential for good measurement. Be sure to wash the glassware well with a mild
detergent and rinse very well with distilled or deionized water. Clean glassware will drain without
leaving water droplets behind.
Electrodes
The electrodes may be checked by using the procedure found in the sections entitled
Electrode
Slope Check
.
1.
Be sure to use distilled or deionized water when following the procedures given in
Electrode Slope Check.
2.
If the electrode fails to respond as expected, see the sections
Measuring Hints
and
Electrode Response
. Repeat the slope check.
3.
If the electrode(s) still fail to respond as expected, substitute another potassium ion
electrode that is known to be in good working order for the questionable electrode. If the
problem persists and you are using an electrode pair, try the same routine with a working
reference electrode.
4.
If the problem persists, the reagent may be of poor quality, interferences in the sample may
be present or the technique may be faulty. See
Reagents, Sample
, and
Technique
sections below.
5.
If another electrode is not available for test purposes, or if the electrode in use is suspect,
review the instruction manual and be sure to:
- Clean and rinse the electrode(s) thoroughly.
- Prepare the electrode(s) properly.
- Use the proper filling solution.
- Adjust the pH and the ionic strength of the solution by the use of the proper ISA.
- Measure correctly and accurately.
- Review
TROUBLESHOOTING HINTS
.
Reagents
Whenever problems arise with the measuring procedure that has been used successfully in the past,
be sure to check the reagent solutions. If in doubt about the credibility of any of the reagents,
prepare them again. Errors may result from contamination of the ISA, incorrect dilution, poor
quality distilled/deionized water, or a simple mathematical miscalculation.
Sample
Look for possible interferences, complexing agents, or substances which could affect the response
or physically damage the sensing electrode (or the reference electrode) if the electrode(s) work
perfectly in the standard, but not in the sample. Try to determine the composition of the samples
prior to testing to eliminate a problem before it starts. See sections on
Measuring Hints, Sample
Requirements,
and
Interferences.