Application of INAA and XRFA in a comparative environmental study

Environmental monitoring requires reliable and effective analytical techniques for widely different concentration ranges. Two such methods (INAA and XRFA) were applied in a comparative environmental study on air dust filters and grass. The samples were collected during one year at two locations (near Bucharest/Romania and near Stuttgart/Germany) with different levels of air pollution. Seventeen environmentally relevant elements (As, Ba, Br, Ca, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, K, Mn, Ni, Pb, S, Sb, Se, V, Zn) were determined. The aim was to test the suitability of INAA and XRFA methods for different elements in these kinds of samples at realistical pollution levels. The results were statistically compared for 13 elements, which were determined by both analytical techniques. They were also used to characterized the air pollution level and its variation at the two locations, and to compare them. Generally, concentrations in air of the elements studied are higher in Bucharest than in Stuttgart.