Attending the seminar were Mr. Vu Duc Loi - Vice President of VKIST and Mr. Phuong Thien Thuong – Vice President of VKIST with several VKIST researchers and experts of NIC. The workshop attracted nearly 200 participants from lots of institutes, universities and enterprises in the field.
The workshop discussed the contents of mercury analysis including: Mercury analysis technique in seawater by cold vaporization method (CVAAS); Direct mercury analysis methods and tools for gas samples; Direct mercury analysis technique by thermal decomposition method.
At the Workshop, in his presentation, Mr. Vu Duc Loi - Vice President of VKIST warmly welcomed the delegates who attended the Workshop at VKIST. He shared about the dangers of mercury to human health and the environment that led to the birth of the Minamata Convention on Mercury. The Minamata Convention on Mercury is a Global Legal Instrument on Mercury which was adopted in Minamata Japan in October, 2013. The objective of the Convention is to protect people and the environment from the harmful effects of mercury. The Convention officially entered into force in Vietnam on September 21, 2017 after being ratified by 76 countries, including Vietnam.
Participation in the Minamata Convention not only contributes to enhancing Vietnam's position in the international arena, but also creates conditions for Vietnam to learn from experience in mercury management and promote cooperation with developed countries in the world. The cooperation between VKIST and NIC - a leader in the development, manufacture, sale and servicing of mercury analyzers and measuring services in Japan to organize the workshop is a testament to the good results that the Minamata Convention brings.
Mr. Vu Duc Loi - Vice President of VKIST spoke at the Workshop
Within the framework of the Workshop, experts from both sides introduced solutions, equipment and techniques for mercury analysis in environmental and biological samples, especially the latest techniques in sampling and mercury analysis in the air.
As we all know, mercury is a toxic element, even a small amount can cause harm to humans and the environment. Most of the Environmental Protection agencies in the States require strict control of the mercury content in the environment. In heavy metal analysis to have a correct and accurate result, besides modern analytical equipment such as AAS/ICP/ICP-MS, sample processing equipment plays an extremely important role.
Mr. Alvin Chua - NIC expert spoke at the seminar
To help chemists have an overview of microwave sample handling techniques and mercury analysis, within the framework of the seminar, the participants were introduced and trained by Mr. Alvin Chua, an expert from NIC company, on mercury analysis techniques in solid, liquid and gaseous media. At the same time, participants were able to practice mercury analysis by cold vapor atomic absorption spectroscopy (CVAAS) on the NIC RA-450 device which directly analyzes mercury without any treatment. Sample management helps the analysis process to have fast results, saving analysis time and chemicals during sample processing.
Experts introduce and train on mercury analysis techniques in solid, liquid and gaseous media
At the end of the workshop, Mr. Vu Duc Loi – Vice President of VKIST and Mr. Alvin Chua awarded certificates of mercury analysis techniques to the participants.