Determination of lanthanoids and some heavy and toxic elements in plant certified reference materials by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry

The possibilities of inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) (choice of isotopes, instrument optimisation) for the determination of lanthanoids, and some heavy and toxic elements in plants are discussed. A variety of plant certified materials (NIST-SRM-1515, NIST-SRM-1547, NIST-SRM-1573a, NIST-SRM-1575, GBW 08504, GBW 08505) are analysed and the elements: As, Be, Bi, Cd, Ce, Co, Cr, Cu, Dy, Er, Eu, Ga, Gd, Ho, La, Lu, Nd, Ni, Pb, Pr, Rb, Sm, Sr, Th, Te, Th, Tl, U, V, Y, Yb and Zn are determined. The comparison with certified values and literature values indicated that ICP-MS is a very promising method for the instrumental determination of Be, lanthanoids, Th and U and other elements at ng/g level in plants.