A pressurized continuous flow system using electromagnetic induction heating technique has been developed for the determination of trace and minor element content in biological samples by microwave induced plasma-optical emission spectrometry (MIP-OES). The system allows the continuous solubilization of samples at an optimized temperature of 120 °C and pressure of 3.5 bar in 40 min. A system was used to perform off-line solubilization of slurried samples of biological tissues, non-fat milk powder and lichen (3% m/v). Recovery of trace and minor elements averaged 99.2 ± 0.1% was performed by MIP-OES using external calibration technique. The accuracy of the method was proved using certified reference materials from the National Research Council Canada (NRCC, Dogfish Liver, DOLT-2), National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST, (Non-Fat Milk Powder, NIST 1549) and International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA, Lichen, IAEA-336). Satisfied analytical results were also obtained in real sample analysis of milk powder, barley and cinnamon.
Keywords:
pressurized electromagnetic induction heating; slurry sample; off-line solubilization; elemental analysis; microwave induced plasma spectrometry