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Clean the balance area including the balance plates inside the balance. Any dust or particles on the plate could throw off the weight measurements. Before beginning make sure there are enough acid washed quartz crucibles for your samples. The crucibles are located in the X-Ray lab in a plastic container labeled 'Acid Washed Crucibles'. Wear gloves while handling the crucibles.
Place a large sheet of paper in front of the balances and place supplies here. For each sample you need weigh paper (Figure 28A), a scoopula (Figure 28C), and a quartz crucible set (Figure 28B). Clean the scoopula with isopropyl alcohol in between each sample as it has direct contact with the sample powder.
Figure 28. Materials needed for weighing LOI. A: Clean paper or kim wipe. B: Crucible set. C: Scoopula. D: Samples
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