Both HPDE and PP are manufactured using a catalytic process potentially involving some of the following elements: aluminum, chromium, silicon, titanium, vanadium, zinc and zirconium. The contamination risk is too high to use these for trace element analysis. Furthermore, HDPE tends to become brittle and crack on long-term storage. On the other hand, few processing metals are employed in the manufacture of LDPE. She therefore gives him LDPE bottles and instructs him to collect duplicate samples from 3 locations in the following manner: (a) from as close to the well head as possible; (b) first draw in the morning from the cold water faucet; (c) first draw from the hot water faucet in the morning; and (d) draw from both the hot water faucet and the cold water faucet after running for 5 minutes. He is also gives him plastic gloves to wear when sampling the water and instructs him to return the bottles to the laboratory as soon as possible after collection.

He carries out her instructions and returns the bottles to the laboratory. She decides to determine the concentrations of sodium, calcium, magnesium, zinc, copper, lead, and cadmium in the samples. What sample preparation is required. What instruments and wavelengths should be used?

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