ICP-MS AND ICP-AES ANALYSIS OF PLANT REFERENCE MATERIALS

Abstract

Two methods — ICP-MS and ICP-AES are used for certification of the new reference material — needles of Siberian pine (NSP-1). Techniques of the analysis include decomposition of plant samples in two different ways: acid digestion in a microwave system MARS-5 and lithium metaborate fusion followed by ICP-MS and ICP-AES analysis of the solutions. Simultaneous determinations of all the elements were carried out in low, medium and high resolution using SF-mass-spectrometer ELEMENT and atomic-emission spectrometer IRIS Advantage with external calibrations and internal standards (In — ICP-MS, Sc —ICP-AES). Middle and high resolutions of ICP mass spectrometer were used for interference corrections. Data obtained by ICP-MS and ICP-AES with different decomposition techniques are in good agreement. The ICP-MS and ICP-AES techniques have been validated by the analysis of three plant reference materials: LB-1 (leaf of a birch), Tr-1 (grass mixture) and EK-1 (Canadian pondweed). These techniques were used for the determination of 38 elements in the new reference material NSP-1. Relative standard deviations for most of the determined elements were below 10%. Combination of ICP-MS and ICP-AES techniques for certification of the new reference material makes it possible to expand the set of elements to be determined and to reduce the total analysis time.