Abstract：The determination of potassium and sodium in zinc oxide powder by inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry under steady conditions was established by optimizing the instrumental parameters. The results showed that, the matrix effect was low under steady conditions when calibration curves of matrix matching was used. As the content of matrix zinc in sample varied in a certain range, it had no influence on the determination of potassium and sodium. Therefore, the potassium and sodium in zinc oxide powder containing various contents of zinc could be determined using one calibration curve of matrix matching in routine analysis. The content of other elements in zinc oxide powder was very low and had no influence on the determination of potassium and sodium. Moreover, there was no mutual interference among testing elements. The proposed method was applied to the determination of potassium and sodium in zinc oxide powder. The relative standard deviation (RSD) was less than or equal to 1.2%. The recoveries of standard addition were between 94% and 103%.
