Chemical Vapour Generation for Tin Determination in High-content Calcium Matrix by Inductively Coupled Plasma Atomic Emission Spectrometry

Chemical vapour generation by reduction with sodium tetraborohydride and coupled to inductively coupled plasma spectrometry (HG-ICP-AES) was examined for tin analysis in high-content calcium matrix samples. Comparison of calibration curves in aqueous and matrix-matched solution showed good linearity (R = 0.9951 – 0.9999) in the observed range of concentration. The effects of added calcium were established as attenuation of emission intensity for 3 % at 224.605 nm and 235.484 nm and only 1 % at 283.999 nm and 189.991 nm of tin lines. The best limit of detection, i.e. 1.9 mg L in aqueous and 2.1 mg L in matrix-matched solution were obtained at 189.991 nm. Method of standard addition was applied for the analysis of laboratory samples of high purity calcite and aragonite shell structures and it gave 0.11 μg g and 0.17 μg g of tin, respectively. The accuracy of method was tested by certified reference material (NRCC, MESS-3) and good recoveries (100.08 %) were obtained in both calibration modes. Tin content was determined by HG-ICP-AES method using matrix-matched calibration in shell samples of Mytilus galloprovinciallis. The obtained values of tin content showed relatively flat distribution in shells along the coast (0.511 – 0.718 μg g). Higher concentrations were measured on several hotspots, especially fishing ports and harbours. (doi: 10.5562/cca2259)