Determination of aluminium and manganese in human scalp hair by electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry using slurry sampling

Methods for the determination of aluminium and manganese in human scalp hair samples by electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry using the slurry sampling technique were developed. Palladium and magnesium nitrate were used as chemical modifiers. Hair samples were pulverized using a zirconia vibrational mill ball, and were prepared as aqueous slurries. Determinations can be performed in the linear ranges of 1.9–150 μg l⁻¹ Al³⁺ and 0.03–10.0 μg l⁻¹ Mn²⁺. Limits of detection of 0.9 mg kg⁻¹ and 27.6 μg kg⁻¹ were obtained for aluminium and manganese, respectively. The analytical recoveries were between 99.6 and 101.8% for aluminium and in the 98.3–101.3% range for manganese. The repeatability of the methods (n=11), slurry preparation procedure and ETAAS measurement, was 16.0 and 7.9% for aluminium and manganese, respectively. The methods were finally applied to the aluminium and manganese determination in 25 scalp hair samples from healthy adults. The levels for aluminium were between 8.21 and 74.08 mg kg⁻¹, while concentrations between 0.03 and 1.20 mg kg⁻¹ were found for manganese.     

Method development for the determination of cadmium in fertilizer samples using high-resolution continuum source graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry and slurry sampling

The determination of cadmium (Cd) in fertilizers is of major interest, as this element can cause growth problems in plants, and also affect animals and humans. High-resolution continuum source graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry (HR-CS GF AAS) with charge-coupled device (CCD) array detection overcomes several of the limitations encountered with conventional line source AAS, especially the problem of accurate background measurement and correction. In this work an analytical method has been developed to determine Cd in fertilizer samples by HR-CS GF AAS using slurry sampling. Both a mixture of 10 μg Pd + 6 μg Mg in solution and 400 μg of iridium as permanent modifier have been investigated and aqueous standards were used for calibration. Pyrolysis and atomization temperatures were 600 °C and 1600 °C for the Pd-Mg modifier, and 500 °C and 1600 °C for Ir, respectively. The results obtained for Cd in the certified reference material NIST SRM 695 (Trace Elements in Multi-Nutrient Fertilizer) of 16.7 ± 1.3 μg g⁻¹ and 16.4 ± 0.75 μg g⁻¹ for the Pd-Mg and Ir modifier, respectively, were statistically not different from the certified value of 16.9 ± 0.2 μg g⁻¹ on a 95% confidence level; however, the results obtained with the Ir modifier were significantly lower than those for the Pd-Mg modifier for most of the samples. The characteristic mass was 1.0 pg for the Pd-Mg modifier and 1.1 pg Cd for the Ir modifier, and the correlation coefficients (R²) of the calibration were > 0.99. The instrumental limits of detection were 7.5 and 7.9 ng g⁻¹, and the limits of quantification were 25 and 27 ng g⁻¹ for Pd-Mg and Ir, respectively, based on a sample mass of 5 mg. The cadmium concentration in the investigated samples was between 0.07 and 5.5 μg g⁻¹ Cd, and hence below the maximum value of 20 μg g⁻¹ Cd permitted by Brazilian legislation.     

Determination of antimony in sediments and soils by slurry sampling graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry using a permanent chemical modifier

For comparison of action of mixed permanent modifiers Ir/Nb and Ir/W, the influence of the amounts of modifier components was studied and the atomic absorption pyrolysis and atomization curves were determined with different modifiers. The optimum amounts of modifier components were 30 μg Ir and 40 μg of Nb that were deposited onto the L'vov platform in advance to analytical measurements. The long-term performance of the Ir and Nb permanent modifiers was derived from the investigations by scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry. The soil and sediment slurries were prepared in 4% hydrofluoric acid and 6% suspension of polytetrafluoroethylene in order to remove the high concentration of silica during the pyrolysis step of 900 °C. The calibration was made by using aqueous standards. The analysis of certified reference materials confirmed the accuracy and reliability of the proposed analytical approach. The precision of Sb determination was characterized with less than 6% RSD.     

Determination of cadmium, chromium and lead in marine sediment slurry samples by electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry using permanent modifiers

A procedure for the determination of cadmium, chromium, and lead in marine sediment slurries by electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry is proposed. Slurry was prepared by mixing 10 mg of ground sample with particle size smaller than 50 μm completed to the weight of 1.0 g with a 3% nitric acid and 10% hydrogen peroxide solution. The slurry was maintained homogeneous with an aquarium air pump. For cadmium, the best results were obtained using iridium permanent with optimum pyrolysis and atomization temperatures of 400 and 1300 °C, respectively, a characteristic mass, m_o (1% absorption), of 2.3 pg (recommended 1 pg). Without modifier use, zirconium, ruthenium, and rhodium m_o were 3.4, 4.1, 4.6, and 4.8 pg, respectively. For chromium, the most sensitive condition was obtained with zirconium permanent with optimum pyrolysis and atomization temperatures of 1500 and 2500 °C, m_o of 6.6 pg (recommended 5.5 pg); and without modifier use, rhodium, iridium, and ruthenium m_o were 5.3, 8.8, 8.8, and 8.9 pg, respectively. For lead, the best modifier was also zirconium, m_o of 8.3 pg for the optimum pyrolysis and atomization temperatures of 600 and 1400 °C, respectively, (recommended m_o of 9.0 pg). For iridium, ruthenium, without modifier, and rhodium, m_o were 14.7, 15.5, 16.5, and 16.5 pg, respectively. For all the modifiers selected in each case, the peaks were symmetrical with r² higher than 0.99. Being analyzed (n = 10), two marine sediment reference materials (PACS-2 and MESS-2 from NRCC), the determined values, μg l⁻¹, and certified values in brackets, were 2.17 ± 0.05 (2.11 ± 0.15) and 0.25 ± 0.03 (0.24 ± 0.01) for cadmium in PACS-2 and MESS-2, respectively. For chromium in PACS-2 and MESS-2 the values were 94.7 ± 5.6 (90.7 ± 4.6) and 102.3 ± 10.7 (106 ± 8), respectively. Finally, for lead in PACS-2 and MESS-2, the results obtained were 184 ± 7 (183 ± 8) and of 25.2 ± 0.40 (21.9 ± 1.2), respectively. For cadmium and lead in both samples and chromium in PACS-2, calibration was accomplished with aqueous calibration curves. For chromium in MESS-2, only with the standard addition technique results were in agreement with the certified ones. The limits of detection (k = 3, n = 10) obtained with the diluents were 0.1, 3.4, and 3.6 μg l⁻¹ for cadmium, chromium, and lead, respectively.     

Determination of nickel, chromium and cobalt in wheat flour using slurry sampling electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry

The slurry technique was applied to the determination of Ni, Cr and Co in wheat flour by electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry (ETAAS). The influence of the graphite furnace temperature programme was optimized. Optimum sensitivity was obtained by using a mixture of 15% HNO₃–10% H₂O₂ as suspended medium for a 3% w/v slurry in the determination of Ni; lower concentrations of HNO₃ were necessary for the determination of Co and Cr (viz. 5 and 10%). The precision of direct analyses of the slurries was improved by using mechanical agitation between measurements; thus, the RSD of the measurements was ca. 5% for repeatability. The direct slurry sampling (SS) technique is suitable for the determination of Ni and Cr in wheat flour samples at levels of 150–450 and 30–72 ng g⁻¹, respectively, as it provides results similar to those obtained by ashing the sample. However, the typically low level of Co in these samples precluded its determination by the proposed method (the study was made in an SRM spiked wholemeal flour), at least in those samples that were contaminated with elevated concentrations of the metal (viz. more than 90 ng of Co per g of flour). The method provides a relative standard deviation of 6, 8, and 4% for Ni, Cr, and Co, respectively.     

Comparison of action of mixed permanent chemical modifiers for cadmium and lead determination in sediments and soils by slurry sampling graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry

Slurry sampling atomic absorption spectrometry with electrothermal atomization was used to the determination of cadmium (Cd) and lead (Pb) in soils and sediments using permanent modifiers. Comparison of action of mixed permanent modifiers niobium (Nb)/iridium (Ir) and tungsten (W)/iridium (Ir) were studied in detail. The effect of amount of Ir, W and Nb on analytical signals of Cd and Pb was examined. The optimal amounts of modifiers for Cd and Pb determination were stated. Niobium carbide formation on graphite surface was studied for different pyrolysis temperatures. Finally for Cd determination in sediments and soils 200 μg of Nb mixed with 5 μg of Ir was used as permanent modifiers and 15 μg of Nb mixed with 200 μg of Ir for Pb determination. Suspensions were prepared in 5% HNO₃. The analytical procedure was optimized carefully basing on data from pyrolysis and atomization curves studies. Ammonium dihydrogen phosphate was used additionally as matrix modifier during Cd determination in samples in order to prevent interferences coming from matrix components. The analysis of CRMs confirmed the reliability of the proposed approach. The precision and accuracy of Cd and Pb determination by the described method for soils and sediments were acceptable.     

Determination of cadmium in paint samples by graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry with optical temperature control

A graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry (GFAAS) method with optical temperature control for the determination of trace cadmium in paint samples is described. Optical temperature control was superior in many respects to current temperature control. The sensibility increased by 60%, the linear range widened by 60%, and the life of graphite tube showed a 200–300% increase because atomization temperature was lowered distinctly and atomization time was shortened. Use of lanthanum chloride as a matrix modifier was investigated. The linear range of calibration curve was 0–24 ng mL⁻¹. The detection limit was 9.6 ng L⁻¹. The characteristic mass was 3.0 pg. The method also resulted in excellent reproducibility (≤2.5% R.S.D.) at such low levels, and the recovery of added cadmium in paint samples was from 94.6% to 102%. This method is readily applicable to the determination of cadmium in paint samples.     

Determination of cadmium in coal using solid sampling graphite furnace high-resolution continuum source atomic absorption spectrometry

This work describes the development of a method to determine cadmium in coal, in which iridium is used as a permanent chemical modifier and calibration is performed against aqueous standards by high-resolution continuum source atomic absorption spectrometry (HR-CS AAS). This new instrumental concept makes the whole spectral environment in the vicinity of the analytical line accessible, providing a lot more data than just the change in absorbance over time available from conventional instruments. The application of Ir (400 g) as a permanent chemical modifier, thermally deposited on the pyrolytic graphite platform surface, allowed pyrolysis temperatures of 700 °C to be used, which was sufficiently high to significantly reduce the continuous background that occurred before the analyte signal at pyrolysis temperatures <700 °C. Structured background absorption also occurred after the analyte signal when atomization temperatures of >1600 °C were used, which arose from the electron-excitation spectrum (with rotational fine structure) of a diatomic molecule. Under optimized conditions (pyrolysis at 700 °C and atomization at 1500 °C), interference-free determination of cadmium in seven certified coal reference materials and two real samples was achieved by direct solid sampling and calibrating against aqueous standards, resulting in good agreement with the certified values (where available) at the 95% confidence level. A characteristic mass of 0.4 pg and a detection limit of 2 ng g^–1, calculated for a sample mass of 1.0 mg coal, was obtained. A precision (expressed as the relative standard deviation, RSD) of <10% was typically obtained when coal samples in the mass range 0.6–1.2 mg were analyzed.Dedicated to the memory of Wilhelm Fresenius     

Determination of lead in plants in controlling phytoremediation processes using slurry sampling electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry

The comparative determination of lead in plant samples by two atomic spectrometric techniques is reported. At first, slurry sampling electrothermal atomisation atomic absorption spectrometry (ETAAS) was applied. The results obtained were compared with those found after a wet digestion procedure by flame atomic absorption spectrometry (FAAS) or ETAAS. The accuracy of the studied methods was checked using a certified reference material (CL???1 CRM, Cabbage Leaves). The recovery of lead was 90% for slurry sampling ETAAS, and 86.6% for liquid sampling ETAAS. The advantages of the slurry sampling ETAAS method are the simplicity of sample preparation and very good sensitivity.     

Determination of cadmium in urine specimens by graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry using a fast atomization program

A simple, fast, and reliable method was developed for the determination of cadmium in urine specimens by graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry (GFAAS). The method involved dilution (1:1) of the specimens with a 4.0% HNO₃, direct injection of a 10 μl aliquot of the corresponding solution into a hot transversely-heated graphite atomizer (110 °C), and application of a fast atomization program (42 s) in which the conventional dry-pyrolysis sequence was substituted by a high-temperature (300 °C) drying step. The effect of the injection temperature (A), injection rate (B), pyrolysis’ ramp (C) and hold (D) times over the analyte’s integrated absorbance, peak-shape and repeatability of the measurements was evaluated by means of a 2^4-1 fractional factorial design. All those individual variables, as well as their first-order interactions (AB-, AC- and AD-type interactions) were found to exert a statistically significant effect (P<0.05). The lack of a chemical modifier other than the nitric acid itself benefited the overall methodology by allowing low-temperature atomization (1200 °C), enhanced atomic and background signals separation, and reduced blank values. A detection limit (3s, n=20) of 0.06 μg l⁻¹ Cd, corresponding to 0.12 μg l⁻¹ Cd in the urine specimen, and a characteristic mass of 1.78 pg/0.0044 s were obtained under the optimized conditions. The standard calibration technique (SCT) was used for quantitation. The successful determination of cadmium in Seronorm™ Trace Elements Urine Batch No. 115 (Nycomed Pharma AS) and in four urine specimens from volunteer donors (recoveries: 91.3-103.4%) attested to the robustness of the proposed method.     

Determination of Cd by electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry after electrodeposition on a graphite probe modified with palladium

Traces of Cd were determined by electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry after electrochemical preconcentration on a commercial graphite ridge probe modified with Pd. The Pd electrochemically deposited on the probe surface served not only as the modifier but it also protected the graphite surface. Cd was electrodeposited at a controlled potential − 1.2 V (vs. saturated calomel electrode) using the Pd-modified graphite probe as a working electrode. The sensitivity of Cd determination remained unchanged for 300 electrodeposition and atomization cycles. The detection limit (3σ_blank) was improved with increasing time of electrolysis and was 1.2 ng l^− 1 for a 10 min electrolysis time in the presence of 0.1 mol l^− 1 NaNO₃. The procedure was applied for the determination of Cd in (1 + 1) diluted seawater and in (1 + 1) diluted urine samples using the standard addition method.     

Study of parameters associated with the determination of cadmium in lake sediments by slurry sampling electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry

Cadmium concentration in lake sediments is determined by suspending the solid samples in a solution containing 5% (v/v) concentrated nitric acid and 0.1% (v/v) Triton X-100. Three modifiers were tested for the direct determination. The furnace temperature programmes and appropriate amount for each modifier were optimised to get the highest signal and the best separation between the atomic and background signals. The drying stage is performed by programming a 400 °C temperature, a ramp time of 25 s and hold time of 10 s on the power supply of the atomiser. No ashing step is used and platform atomisation is carried out at 2200 °C. W–Rh permanent modifier combined with conventional modifier by delivering 10 μl of 0.50% (w/v) NH₄H₂PO₄ solution was the best chemical modifier for cadmium determination. This modifier also acts as a liquid medium for the slurry, thus simplifying the procedure. Calibration is performed using aqueous standards in the 1–5 μg l⁻¹ range. The optimised method gave a limit of detection of 0.56 ng ml⁻¹, characteristic mass of 10.1±0.8 pg for aqueous standard, 9.6±0.7 pg for slurry samples containing different Cd concentrations and good precision (7.6–5.2%). The method was validated by analysing four certified reference lake sediment materials: LKSD-1, LKSD-2, LKSD-3 and LKSD-4; satisfactory recoveries were obtained (90.0–96.3%) and no statistical differences were observed between the experimental and the certified cadmium concentration. The developed methodology was used to determine cadmium in three ‘real’ sediment samples from lakes in the area of Wielkopolski National Park, Poland.     

Electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometric determination of cadmium in bangladeshi vegetables with a metal tube atomizer and slurry sampling technique

Ultrasonic slurry sampling electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry with a molybdenum tube atomizer has been applied for the determination of cadmium in vegetable samples in Bangladesh. The suspension-stabilizing medium was 10% glycerol solution. The optimum pyrolysis temperature was 300°C. The detection limit was 13?fg (3S/N). Matrix element interference was studied and it was found that thiourea as a chemical modifier eliminated the interference. The results for the determination of cadmium in vegetable samples by the proposed method were in good agreement with those measured in dissolved acid-digested samples. The method enables rapid calibration, and simple and rapid analysis of cadmium in vegetable samples at low cost.     

石墨炉原子吸收光谱法测定茶叶中的铅

采用石墨炉原子吸收光谱法测定茶叶中铅,以NH4H2PO4作为基体改进剂,提高了测定的灰化温度,消除了基体干扰.方法简便,快速,准确度高.通过对标准物质的多次测定,结果均在其保证值范围内,相对标准偏差为2.8%.对样品进行加标回收试验,回收率为96%～105%,方法检出限为0.12μg/L.     

The use of solid-phase extraction and direct injection of a copolymer sorbent as slurry into the graphite furnace prior to determination of cadmium by ETAAS

Abstract

Several aquatic heterogeneous humic-solute fractions with known molecular-size ranges were fractionated further by coupled size-exclusion chromatography (SEC) and polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE). The results of SEC-PAGE, obtained for several humic-solute fractions, corresponded reasonably well to the known molecular-size distributions of the dissolved organic matter (DOM). Despite the limited resolving power PAGE appears to offer an alternative coarse method, beside SEC, for fractionation of the heterogeneous humic matter (HM).     

Determination of vanadium content in soils by slurry sampling electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry using KO300G as the stabilizing agent

A direct and sensitive method for the determination of vanadium concentrations in soil is developed using ultrasonic slurry sampling electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry (USSSETAAS). The surfactant, KO300G, is used as the stabilizing agent. The precision and accuracy of the method are investigated. The detection limits are 0.6 and 0.7 μg 1⁻¹ for SRM Montana Soil 2711 and SRM Soil — S, respectively. The method is applied to determine the vanadium content in 10 soil samples from the Wielkopolska region.     

石墨炉原子吸收法测定石脑油中微量砷

试样用四氢呋喃（THF）有机溶剂稀释,以硝酸镍为基体改进剂,研究采用石墨炉原子吸收法直接进样测定石脑油中的砷量。研究表明,砷量在0～50μg／L范围内线性关系良好,回收率93％～104％。     

石墨炉原子吸收光谱法测定食盐中钡

建立了石墨炉原子吸收光谱法测定食盐中钡的方法,不需要对石墨管做任何处理,也无需对样品进行除盐处理,通过优化石墨炉升温程序,极大改善了食盐样品中钡测定的灵敏度和峰型。钡在0.00~50.0 μg/L浓度范围呈现良好的线性关系,相关系数优于0.999,检出限为0.650 mg/kg(以称样量0.200 g,定容至50 mL计算)。食盐样品钡加标回收率范围为81.3%~105.1%,相对标准偏差在8.9%以内。方法稳定可靠,准确度较高,适用于食盐中钡的测定。     

Reduction of interferences in graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry by multiple linear regression modelling

The multivariate effects of Na, K, Mg and Ca as nitrates on the electrothermal atomisation of manganese, cadmium and iron were studied by multiple linear regression modelling. Since the models proved to efficiently predict the effects of the considered matrix elements in a wide range of concentrations, they were applied to correct the interferences occurring in the determination of trace elements in seawater after pre-concentration of the analytes. In order to obtain a statistically significant number of samples, a large volume of the certified seawater reference materials CASS-3 and NASS-3 was treated with Chelex-100 resin; then, the chelating resin was separated from the solution, divided into several sub-samples, each of them was eluted with nitric acid and analysed by electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry (for trace element determinations) and inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (for matrix element determinations). To minimise any other systematic error besides that due to matrix effects, accuracy of the pre-concentration step and contamination levels of the procedure were checked by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometric measurements. Analytical results obtained by applying the multiple linear regression models were compared with those obtained with other calibration methods, such as external calibration using acid-based standards, external calibration using matrix-matched standards and the analyte addition technique. Empirical models proved to efficiently reduce interferences occurring in the analysis of real samples, allowing an improvement of accuracy better than for other calibration methods.     

石墨炉原子吸收法测定3-苯基丙烯酸酯类化合物中微量钯

利用高灵敏的石墨炉原子吸收法,在V(HCl):V(HNO3):V(H2O)＝5:1:94混合酸介质中测定苯基丙烯酸酯类化合物中的钯量.已纯化样品钯量的平均值是6.76 μg/g,标准相对偏差是4.8%,平均回收率为99.3%;未纯化样品钯量的平均值是121.2 μg/g,平均相对偏差是5.4%.还讨论酸介质对测定钯吸光度的影响,通过比较找到了合适的酸介质组成.