DETERMINATION OF TRACE-ELEMENTS IN PLANT MATERIALS BY SLURRY SAMPLING GRAPHITE-FURNACE AAS - SOME ANALYTICAL PROBLEMS

The analytical conditions of cadmium, lead, nickel and cobalt determination in plant material by slurry sampling graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry (GFAAS) are presented. The results of stability tests for slurries prepared in different ways are also shown. The ratio of the amount of analyte found in the liquid phase to the total amount of analyte in the slurries is investigated. The determination results are calculated from aqueous standard calibration graphs (cobalt and nickel) or by the standard addition method (cadmium and lead). Statistical evaluation of the results from the certified materials indicate that the slurry method is both accurate and comparable in precision to the conventional wet-ashing procedure.