Stopped-flow determination of carbaryl and its hydrolysis product in mixtures in environmental samples

A kinetic method for determination of carbaryl and its hydrolysis product in mixtures, by a modular stopped-flow system, is reported. The method involves the formation of the coupling product formed between 1-naphthol, the hydrolysis product of carbaryl and diazotized sulphanilic acid in a weak acid medium. With one hydrolysed and one unhydrolysed sample aliquot both carbaryl and 1-naphthol can be determined in their mixtures, with a relative standard deviation of 0.8%. The method is highly selective and free from interference by other pesticides tested and has been applied to the analysis of environmental samples for carbaryl and 1-naphthol.     

Comparison of fluorine determination in biological and environmental samples by NAA, PAA and PIXE

Capabilities of instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA), photon activation analysis with radiochemical separation (RPAA) and proton induced γ-ray emission (PIGE) for determination of fluorine in biological and environmental materials are compared in terms of detection limits, nuclear and other interferences. The lowest detection limit of 0.5 μg^.g^-1 was achieved by RPAA, the detection limit of the non destructive and interference-free PIGE method was by one order of magnitude higher, whereas two to three orders of magnitude higher detection limits compared to RPAA were obtained in INAA. A satisfactory agreement was found between the results obtained in this work and reference, mostly information values for several biological and environmental materials. However, higher values of two orders of magnitude were determined by RPAA and PIGE in NIST RM-8414 Bovine Muscle compared to the fluorine information value. The reason for this difference is the contamination of this material with Teflon, which occurred on its preparation and has not been taken into account in establishing the information value. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Spectrophotometric determination of isoproturon using p-aminoacetophenone and its application in environmental and biological samples

A simple and sensitive method for the determination of isoproturon, a widely used herbicide is described here which is based on alkaline hydrolysis of isoproturon to its corresponding primary amine followed by diazotization and coupling with p-aminoacetophenone in alkaline medium. The absorption maxima of the coloured compound formed is measured at 525 nm. Beer's law is obeyed over the concentration range of 0.5-5.0 mug in a final solution volume of 25 ml (0.02-0.2 ppm). The molar absorptivity and Sandell's sensitivity were found to be 8.6x10(5) l mol(-1) cm(-1) and 0.0002 mug cm(-2), respectively. The method has been satisfactorily applied to the determination of isoproturon in environmental and biological samples.     

A simple radiochemical determination of90Sr in environmental samples

A simple procedure for the determination of⁹⁰Sr in environmental samples is described. The method uses the different solubilities of the oxalates of calcium and strontium in presence of a large excess of calcium. For this reason the method is especially suited for Ca-rich samples, as e.g., bones or soils. However, after addition of supplementary calcium it works equally well for other types of samples. The method was tested by analyzing the IAEA Certified Reference Materials soil, animal bone and algae.     

Comparative studies of methylmercury determination in biological and environmental samples

Some parameters affecting the accuracy of various approaches to methylmercury (MeHg) determination in biological and environmental samples were studied. Different isolation techniques (ion-exchange, extraction, volatilization, distillation) and final measurement via cold vapour atomic absorption spectroscopy (CV AA) or gas chromatography (GC) were compared. Results obtained by the various isolation techniques are comparable for almost all biological and environmental samples, except for soils and some sediments, where disagreement between the results obtained by GC and CV AA was found. In order to resolve these problems, a new separation technique based on distillation of MeHg from the sample followed either by CV AA or GC was developed. The new method results in very good recovery and reproducibility (95 ± 2%) for all samples examined (fish, mussel, shrimp, blood, hair, algae, sediment, etc.), is specific for MeHg and provides for its differentiation from other species by an indirect CV AA determination. Gas-chromatographic measurement of the isolated MeHg using different packings and conditioning of the columns is also discussed. The distillation method with GC detection is advantageous in producing cleaner chromatograms and in prolonging the life-time of the packing and the intervals between reconditioning.     

Spectrophotometric method for determination of vanadium and its application to industrial, environmental, biological and soil samples

The very sensitive, fairly selective direct spectrophotometric method for the determination of trace amount of vanadium (V) with 1,5-diphenylcarbohydrazide (1,5-diphenylcarbazide) has been developed. 1,5-diphenylcarbohydrazide (DPCH) reacts in slightly acidic (0.0001–0.001 M H₂SO₄ or pH 4.0–5.5) 50% acetonic media with vanadium (V) to give a red–violet chelate which has an absorption maximum at 531 nm. The average molar absorption coefficient and Sandell’s sensitivity were found to be 4.23×10⁴ l mol⁻¹ cm⁻¹ and 10 ng cm⁻² of V^v, respectively. Linear calibration graph were obtained for 0.1–30 μg ml⁻¹ of V^v: the stoichiometric composition of the chelate is 1:3 (V: DPCH). The reaction is instantaneous and absorbance remain stable for 48 h. The interference from over 50 cations, anions and complexing agents has been studied at 1 μg ml⁻¹ of V^v. The method was successfully used in the determination of vanadium in several standard reference materials (alloys and steels), environmental waters (potable and polluted), biological samples (human blood and urine), soil samples, solution containing both vanadium (V) and vanadium (IV) and complex synthetic mixtures. The method has high precision and accuracy (s=±0.01 for 0.5 μg ml⁻¹).     

Spectrophotometric determination of vanadium using variamine blue and its application to synthetic, environmental and biological samples

A simple, rapid and accurate spectrophotometric method is described for the determination of trace amounts of vanadium using variamine blue (VB) as a chromogenic reagent. The method is based on the oxidation of variamine blue to form a violetcolored species on reaction with vanadium(V), having an absorption maximum at 570 nm. Beer’s law is obeyed in the range of 0.1–2.0 μg ml^?1. The molar absorptivity and Sandell’s sensitivity were found to be 1.65 × 10⁴ l mol^?1 cm^?1 and 0.003 μg cm^?2, respectively. Optimum reaction conditions were evaluated in order to delimit the linear range. The effect of interfering ions on the determination is described. The proposed method has been successfully applied to the determination of vanadium in steel, pharmaceutical, environmental, and biological samples.     

Simultaneous determination of plutonium and americium in biological and environmental samples

A radiochemical method is given to determine the specific activity of²³⁸Pu, and²⁴¹Am from the global fallout in environmental and biological samples. The radiochemical recovery was for human livers Pu: 60–70%, Am: 40–60%; Bran: Pu: 50–70%, Am: 30–40%; Soil: Pu: 50–80%, Am: 30–50%. The resolution of the alpha-spectrum was for soils 30–40 keV and for livers and brans 40–60 KeV. To facilitate the wet ashing of large amounts of bran (15 kg), which are necessary to determine the presently very small activity concentrations of the transuranic elements in these types of samples, a fermentation process was employed. The procedure was tested by using NBS standard reference material and subsequently applied for the determination of Pu and Am from the global fallout in livers, plant tissues (bran), and soils.     

The simple radiochemical determination of 90Sr in environmental solid samples by solvent extraction

Determination of ⁹⁰Sr in environmental solid samples is a challenging task because of the presence of so many other radionuclides in samples of interest. This problem was dealt with by radiochemical separation of strontium followed by yttrium separation and Cerenkov counting of the high-energy ??-particle emissions of ⁹⁰Y in order to quantitate ⁹⁰Sr. In this work, an improved method is described for the determination of ⁹⁰Sr in soil samples, through the separation of the daughter ⁹⁰Y at equilibrium. The procedure is based on the HDEHP solvent extraction in combination with liquid scintillation spectrometry (LSS). A low background Quantulus has been optimized for low level counting of Cerenkov radiation emitted by the hard ??-emitter ⁹⁰Y. The analytical quality of the method has been checked by analyzing IAEA Soil-375 reference materials. The analytical method has also been successfully applied to the determination of ⁹⁰Sr for moss-soil samples in inter-laboratory exercises through IAEA??s ALMERA network. The chemical recovery for ⁹⁰Y extraction ranged from 80 to 85% and the counting efficiency was 73% in the window 25?C400 keV.     

Analysis of90Sr in environmental and biological samples by extraction chromatography using a crown ether

The use of crown ethers is a simple and rapid method for the separation and determination of strontium in various samples. After sample dissolution oxalate precipitation was carried out to remove K. Chromatographic separation of strontium from most inactive and radioactive interference was done with a crown ether. The chemical recovery was determined gravimetrically. Radiostrontium was then determined by liquid scintillation counting.     

Cadmium determination in biological samples by direct solid sampling flame atomic absorption spectrometry

A direct solid sampling flame atomic absorption spectrometric procedure for trace determination of cadmium in biological samples has been developed. Test samples (0.05–2.00 mg) were ground and weighed into small polyethylene vials, which were connected to the device for solid sample introduction into a conventional air/acetylene flame. Test samples were carried as a dry aerosol to a quartz cell, placed between the burner and the optical path, which had a perpendicular entrance and a slit in the upper part. The atomic vapor generated in the flame produced a transient signal that was totally integrated within 1 s. The effect of operating conditions and the extent of grinding on the analytical signal were evaluated. Background signals were always low and a characteristic mass of 0.29 ng Cd was obtained. Calibration was performed using different masses of solid certified reference materials. Results obtained for certified and in-house reference materials were typically within the 95% confidence interval of the certified and/or reference value, and the precision, expressed as relative standard deviation, was between 3.8 and 6.7%. The proposed system is simple and it might be adapted to conventional atomic absorption spectrometers allowing the determination of Cd in more than 80 test samples per hour, excluding weighing.     

Trends in liquid-phase microextraction, and its application to environmental and biological samples

Liquid phase microextraction (LPME) is a popular technique for sample pretreatment before the trace determination of target compounds from complex matrices, examples being pesticides in environmental and food samples, or drug residuals in biological samples such as blood or urine. LPME is simple, affordable, easy to operate, and highly sensitive. It is a miniaturized implementation of conventional liquid-liquid extraction in which only a few microliters of solvents are used instead of several hundreds of milliliters. This review focuses on newly developed LPME-based techniques, their application to environmental and biological samples, on their limitations, and on future applications.

Nonextractive spectrofluorimetric determination of aluminium in real, environmental and biological samples using chromotropic acid

An ultra-sensitive and highly selective nonextractive fluorimetric method is presented for the rapid determination of aluminium at nano-trace levels using chromotropic acid as a fluorimetric reagent [lambda(ex) = 360 nm and lambda(em) = 390 nm] in the pH range of 4.1-4.7. The fluorescence intensity of the metal chelate (2:3 complex) reaches a constant value within 1/2 hr and remains unchanged for over 48 hr. The fluorescence intensity aluminium concentration calibration curve is collinear between 1 and 300 ng/ml of Al. A constant fluorescence intensity is obtained over a wide range (1:50-1:1500) of Al:reagent molar concentrations. Large excesses of over 60 cations, anions and complexing agents (like tartrate, oxalate, phosphate, thio-urea, SCN(-), etc.) do not interfere in the Al determination. The developed method was successfully used in assaying aluminium in several standard reference materials (Al-bronze, brass, stainless steel) as well as in some environmental and biological samples. The method is very precise and accurate (S.D = +/-0.001 on 10 ng/ml; 11 determinations).     

A method for the determination of tritium distribution in environmental and biological samples

A method for the determination of the tritium distribution in environmental and biological samples is described. Tritium as HTO is removed by freeze-drying and the residue is combusted to obtain organically bound tritium. Each tritium fraction is electrolytically enriched and determined by liquid scintillation spectrometry. Enrichment and large sample sizes are required due to the low environmental tritium levels. During the analyses of more than 600 samples over a two-year period all aspects of the method (freeze-drying, combustion, enrichment and counting) have provided reproducible and precise results.     

同位素稀释电感耦合等离子体质谱测定环境和生物样品中的镉

应用同位素稀释电感耦合等离子体质谱（ID—ICP—MS）对环境和生物样品茶叶、湖沉积物和人发标准物质中的镉进行测定研究。对电感耦合等离子体质谱（ICP—MS）的工作条件和参数进行了最优化。讨论了多原子离子和同量异位素对镉同位素比值的影响,通过天然镉标准溶液对质量歧视进行了校正,并优化同位素稀释剂的加入量。将该方法应用于茶叶、人发和沉积物标准物质的测定。     

A simple method for the spectrophotometric determination of atrazine using p-aminoacetophenone and its application in environmental and biological samples

A spectrophotometric method is described for the determination of the widely used herbicide, atrazine. Atrazine reacts with pyridine and forms a quaternary halide which adds a hydroxyl group in the presence of alkali to form a carbinol base. The heterocyclic ring of the resulting carbinol breaks forming a glutaconic dialdehyde which is subsequently coupled with p-aminoacetophenone (PMP) to form a yellow orange polymethine dye. Beer's law is obeyed in the range 0.16–1.6 ppm of atrazine at 470 nm. The method is sensitive and free from the interference of most of the foreign species. The analytical parameters have been optimised and the method has been successfully applied to the determination of atrazine in various environmental and biological samples.     

Low volume microwave digestion and direct determination of selenium in biological samples by hydride generation-atomic fluorescence spectrometry

A low volume microwave digestion (LVMWD) procedure has been developed to have all forms of selenium (Se) compounds in biological samples decomposed to Se (IV) and allow total Se be directly determined by hydride generation-atomic fluorescence spectrometry (HG-AFS), or voltammetrically. Between 0.3 and 0.4 mL of mixed digestion reagents consisting of concentrated (15.4 M) HNO₃-(18.5 M) H₂SO₄ (v:v = 10:1) and >5 to <40 mg sample were found ideal systems with an optimized MW digestion program. Total Se in five certified reference materials was accurately determined. The results obtained by the conventional and LVMWD techniques agreed well. By avoiding pre-reduction step, this method, suitable for a wide range of biological samples, fully takes the advantages of HG-AFS or voltammetric techniques for their high sensitivity, high tolerance to matrix-related interference and accessibility in instrumentation. LVMWD not only enhances the sample output by 3 times and reduces the operational cost and acid wastes, but also makes the small sample analysis possible for many environmental and medical related research objectives. The digestion pathways of Se containing organic samples are also discussed based on the experimental results.     

Spectrophotometric determination of lead in industrial, environmental, biological and soil samples using 2,5-dimercapto-1,3,4-thiadiazole

A very simple, ultra-sensitive and fairly selective non-extractive spectrophotometric method for the determination of trace amounts of lead with 2,5-dimercapto-1,3,4-thiadiazole (DMTD) has been developed. DMTD reacts in slightly acidic (0.0015-0.01 M HCl) aquatic media with lead(II) to give a greenish-yellow chelate, which has an absorption maximum at 375 nm. The reaction is instantaneous and absorbance remains stable for 24 h. The average molar absorption coefficient and Sandell's sensitivity were found to be 4.93x10(4) lmol(-1)cm(-1) and 15 ngcm(-2) of Pb, respectively. Linear calibration graphs were obtained for 0.1-40 mugml(-1) of Pb; the stoichiometric composition of the chelate is 1:2 (Pb-DMTD). The interference from over 50 cations, anions and complexing agents has been studied at 1 mugml(-1) of Pb. The method developed was used successfully in the determination of lead in several standard reference materials (alloys and steels), environmental waters (potable and polluted), biological samples (human blood and urine), soil samples, solutions containing both lead(II) and lead(IV) and complex synthetic mixtures. The method has high precision and accuracy (S=+/-0.01 for 0.5 mugml(-1)).     

Rapid determination of antimony in biological and environmental samples using instrumental neutron activation analysis

A rapid non-destructive activation analysis method has been developed for the determination of antimony. A high resolution low energy Ge detector is used to measure the 61.6 keV γ-ray from^122mSb (T=4.2 min). Sensitivities and detection limits for biological and environmental samples activated with thermal and epithermal neutrons are listed. The time required for the anlaysis is about 12 min per sample using thermal activation and 22 minutes using epithermal activation analysis.     

Blister-colorimetric determination of phosphate ions in water,agricultural samples,and biological samples

A procedure was proposed for the determination of phosphate ions in a blister cell (pellet cartridge) with a dry reagent mixture. The procedure is suitable for the quantitative determination of phosphate in different samples using a dry reagent mixture in an ampule or a blister without dissolving the reagents. After an ampule or a blister cell was opened and several drops of a test liquid were added, a color developed, whose intensity was proportional to the concentration of phosphate ions in the solution. The solution was then diluted to 2 mL with water and analyzed by photometry. The composition of the mixture was determined, and the procedure for the quantitative determination of phosphate ions was proposed; the procedure involves the formation and reduction of phosphomolybdic acid and the use of auxiliary reagents. The error of the colorimetric determination of phosphate ions in aqueous solutions, soil extracts, and urine was estimated with the participation of inexperienced operators.