The method is directly applicable to the determination of low contents (2 mg/kg to 100 mg/kg) of organic halogen in petroleum products such as gasolines, middle distillates and residual fuels. The method can also be applied to crude oils; however, no precision data have been established for this additional product type.
Except for fluorine (F), the organic halogens chlorine (Cl), bromine (Br) and iodine (I) that may be present in the sample are determined quantitatively. The halogen is reported as the equivalent number of chloride ions. A sample preparation is described for the removal of inorganic halides from residual fuels, before the determination of the organic
halogen content. This procedure is essential to obtain a result of organic halogen only.
NOTE The total halogen content can be measured by ISO 15597 'Petroleum and related products – Determination of chlorine and bromine content – Wavelength-dispersive X-ray fluorescence spectrometry method'. This method does not use a
combustion step, but it requires a sample preparation according to clause 7 of this standard to determine the organic halogen content.
WARNING The use of this standard may involve hazardous materials, operations and equipment. This standard does not purport to address all of the safety problems associated with its use. It is the
responsibility of the user of this standard to establish appropriate safety and health practices and determine the applicability of regulatory limitations prior to use.