This is the 29th annual review of the application of atomic spectrometry to the chemical analysis of environmental samples. This Update refers to papers published approximately between September 2012 and July 2013 and continues the series ofAtomic Spectrometry Updates (ASUs)
Developments in geochemical analysis included the production and (re)certification of new geological RMs for bulk, isotopic and microspatial analysis.
Optimisation of LA-ICP-MS techniques for the interrogation of geochemical samples continues to be reported and a number of useful instrumental review articles (AMS, ICP-MS and SIMS) have been published.Feedback on this review is most welcome and the review coordinator can be contacted using the email address provided.
Sampling techniquesThe development of personal workplace air samplers, used to monitor workers' exposure to airborne particles, continues to be a fertile area of research. cartridge assembly which could then be loaded directly into an XRF system for analysis. Initial wind tunnel tests using test aerosols of known particle size indicated that this sampler could collect representative particle size distributions.Generation of test particle atmospheres in a laboratory environment is difficult and it is most informative to see publications describing the development and validation of aerosol test chambers. A system 21 for source characterisation and controlled human exposure to NPs generated during gas-metal arc welding had an airtight 22 m 3 climate-controlled stainless steel chamber at its core. A variety of online measurements, e.g. using TEOM or SMPS, and offline measurements, e.g. using electron microscopy and PIXE techniques, could be made via sampling ports/samplers. Test particles were generated in a separate chamber and subsequently piped into the main chamber. Stable concentrations of atmospheric particles could be maintained for up to 6 h and concentrations could be varied from <5 µg m by EDXRF spectrometry (Cr, Cu, Fe, Ni, Pb and Zn), there were no significant differences in values between the two measurement approaches (paired t-test, p > 0.2, 95 % CI). In summary, the authors concluded that this method was suitable for the high throughput analysis of lightly loaded air filter samples.
11The bioaccessible metal fraction in urban aerosol particles may be a more informative metric than the total metal composition in assessng the potential health effects of exposure to inhaled particles. . Using this optimised method, the airborne levels of Ag in Buenos Aires was determined to be 2-4.5 ng m , respectively.
Emission spectroscopyInvestigation into the use of LIBS for the analysis of aerosol samples is a focus of a number of research groups. Elemental emission intensities were normalised to carbon (measured at 247.856 nm) which could be used as an internal standard because the carbon emission from the underlying nylon filter was much larger and relatively more stable than the signal from the deposited carbonaceous particles. This approach was useful for minimising shot-to-...
