Claudia María Ramírez Botero

Method Validation for the Determination of Mercury, Cadmium, Lead, Arsenic, Copper, Iron, and Zinc in Fish Through Microwave-Induced Plasma Optical Emission Spectrometry (MIP OES)

A simple, sensitive, and selective analytical method was validated for the determination of mercury, cadmium, lead, arsenic, copper, iron, and zinc in fish muscle using microwave-induced plasma optical emission spectrometry (MIP OES) after acid digestion. The procedure for determining linear range, detection and quantification limits, selectivity, trueness, repeatability, reproducibility, and uncertainty of the method is reported. The results of the validation process demonstrate that the method complies with the provisions of the European Commission guidelines for metals mercury, arsenic, copper, iron, and zinc, but for cadmium and lead, it can only be used as a screening method. The SRM 1946 (Lake Superior Fish Tissue) certified reference material was used to evaluate analytical result quality. The recovery varies between 87 and 99.7%. The HorRat value was equal to or lower than 0.67, and the expanded uncertainty was lower than 37%. The method described can be considered adequate for the simultaneous determination and quantification of the chosen heavy metals in fish matrices. For Cd and Pb, the method could only be employed as a screening tool and not for official control of these contaminants.

Iron, Copper and Zinc in Some Fish Species of the Atrato River Delta, Colombian Caribbean

ABSTRACT The concentrations of iron (Fe), copper (Cu), and zinc (Zn) were evaluated in 96 samples of the following eight fish species: Centropomus undecimalis, Caranx hippos, Scomberomorus brasiliensis, Lutjanus purpureus, Caranx crysos, Megalops atlanticus, Elops saurus, and Epinephelus itajara collected in the Atrato River Delta in the Gulf of Urabá. Three fish were caught from each of the following common fishing grounds: Bahía Candelaria, Bahía Marirrío, Bocas del Roto, and Bocas del Atrato. Fish were captured during a one-year period, with one specimen per species in each climatic period: dry, transient, and wet. The quantification was performed by microwave plasma-atomic emission spectroscopy. The highest levels of Fe and Cu were found in Caranx crysos, and highest level of Zn in Megalops atlanticus. According to the percentage of the daily value per food serving, Caranx crysos and Caranx hippos are good sources of Fe, and Caranx crysos is a good source of Cu.