Stoichiography and chemical methods of phase analysis of multielement multiphase substances and materials

The problems and achievements in the determination of the phase composition of multielement multiphase inorganic solid substances are considered. The problems of theory, methodology and practical use of two chemical methods of phase analysis, viz., selective dissolution and reference-free stoichiographic dissolution are discussed. The unique potential of stoichiography and differential dissolution method, which allows one to overcome many limitations and difficulties typical of modern phase analysis techniques, are demonstrated. Examples of using differential dissolution for the phase analysis of diverse substances and functional materials are given.