Elemental Quantification in Intradermal Tattoo-Inks by Means of Total Reflection X-Ray Fluorescence

Abstract

This work describes the application of a detailed set of TXRF evaluations to the elemental content of assorted tattoo inks, on the market of the city of Concepcion, Chile. We applied TXRF as a screening method for determining the composition in 3 sets of tattoo inks, in order to establish, from an inorganic point of view, the composition and purity of the samples, evaluating their elemental innocuousness. The analyzed 48 products were freely acquired from on line suppliers. All of them were analyzed by external standard quantification, but in order to inter-compare the results, a 15% of the samples were acidly digested and then quantified by the internal standard method. In the samples we determined: 1) their inorganic quantitative composition and, 2) the possible presence of elements which are potential health hazards. In this study few anomalies were found: 1) The high presence Ti of and W in few samples, 2) Arsenic was found in four of them, and 3) A trace detection of a rare earth element in a particular product. The products studied are almost freely imported from a world open marked, so the questions about their innocuousness could affect not only to the Chilean society.

The crucial contribution of X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy in medicine

“…It is thus of primary importance to determine the chemical nature of organic and inorganic elements within tattoo inks and the spatial distributions of these elements within the skin reactions to tattoos. XRF experiments were performed to attain these goals, such spectroscopy being able to determine and localize the heavy elements versus some specific structures of the tissue [182][183][184][185][186].…”

XANES spectroscopy for the clinician

“…The facts that tattooing has become a pervasive social phenomenon [172] and that tattoo inks contain various potentially toxic organic and inorganic substances [173,174] explain the significant increase of the prevalence of skin diseases related to tattoos. Among the metals which have been identified in skin tattoos, we focus here on Zn [175].…”