Abstract
This paper demonstrated a highly matrix-tolerant analytical method by using a combination of ammonium pyrrolidine dithiocarbamate/methyl isobutyl ketone (APDC-MIBK) microextraction and laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS), for Cd and Pb determination. Several advantages of proposed analytical method are emphasized herein. First, it took only 200 µL of organic solvent throughout the entire analysis process, with enhancement factors as high as 25. At the same time, recoveries from replicate analyses of natural water [NIST 1640(a)] containing mean concentrations of 3.1 μg Cd L–1 and 9.3 μg Pb L–1 were 95 ± 3 and 104 ± 4%, respectively. The corresponding detection limits were 0.6 μg L–1 for Cd and 0.9 μg L–1 for Pb. Second, it was capable of analyzing solutions containing complicated matrix such as seawater. Corresponding detection limits in seawater were 19.42 μg L–1 for Cd and 8.57 μg L–1 for Pb. Furthermore, a higher selectivity can be possible when replacing APDC with other specific chelating reagents.