TY - JOUR
T1 - Background element content in the lichen Pseudevernia furfuracea: a comparative analysis of digestion methods
AU - Ravera, Sonia
AU - Ravera, Sonia
AU - Incerti, Guido
AU - Candotto Carniel, Fabio
AU - Giordano, Simonetta
AU - Adamo, Paola
AU - Capozzi, Fiore
AU - Cecconi, Elva
AU - Benesperi, Renato
AU - Puntillo, Domenico
AU - Spagnuolo, Valeria
AU - Bargagli, Roberto
AU - Tretiach, Mauro
AU - Favero-Longo, Sergio Enrico
PY - 2019
Y1 - 2019
N2 - In bioaccumulation studies, the interpretation of pollutant contents in the target biomonitor has to be performed by assessing a deviation from an unaltered reference condition. A common strategy consists in the comparison with background element content (BEC) values, often built up by uncritically merging methodologically heterogeneous data. In this respect, the acid digestion of samples was identified as a major step affecting BEC data. Here, the analytical outcomes of two acid mixtures were compared on a set of matched paired samples of the lichen Pseudevernia furfuracea, a widely used biomonitor for which BEC values based on partial digestion were previously provided. The standard reference material BCR 482 (P. furfuracea) was used to validate analytical procedures consisting of either a HF total mineralization or an aqua regia partial one, both associated to ICP-MS multi-element analysis. In particular, the performance of the procedures was evaluated by comparing analytical results of field samples with the accuracy obtained on BCR aliquots (measured-to-expected percentage ratio). The total digestion showed a better performance for Al, As, Ba, Ca, Cd, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Se, Sn, and Zn, whereas the opposite was found for Cr, Co, P, and S. Moreover, new BEC values were provided for P. furfuracea using a consolidated statistical approach, after a total sample digestion with hydrofluoric acid. The multivariate investigation of the background variability of 43 elements in 57 remote Italian sites led to the identification of geographically homogeneous areas for which BEC values are provided for use as reference in biomonitoring applications.
AB - In bioaccumulation studies, the interpretation of pollutant contents in the target biomonitor has to be performed by assessing a deviation from an unaltered reference condition. A common strategy consists in the comparison with background element content (BEC) values, often built up by uncritically merging methodologically heterogeneous data. In this respect, the acid digestion of samples was identified as a major step affecting BEC data. Here, the analytical outcomes of two acid mixtures were compared on a set of matched paired samples of the lichen Pseudevernia furfuracea, a widely used biomonitor for which BEC values based on partial digestion were previously provided. The standard reference material BCR 482 (P. furfuracea) was used to validate analytical procedures consisting of either a HF total mineralization or an aqua regia partial one, both associated to ICP-MS multi-element analysis. In particular, the performance of the procedures was evaluated by comparing analytical results of field samples with the accuracy obtained on BCR aliquots (measured-to-expected percentage ratio). The total digestion showed a better performance for Al, As, Ba, Ca, Cd, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Se, Sn, and Zn, whereas the opposite was found for Cr, Co, P, and S. Moreover, new BEC values were provided for P. furfuracea using a consolidated statistical approach, after a total sample digestion with hydrofluoric acid. The multivariate investigation of the background variability of 43 elements in 57 remote Italian sites led to the identification of geographically homogeneous areas for which BEC values are provided for use as reference in biomonitoring applications.
KW - Acid extraction
KW - Air pollution
KW - Baseline
KW - Bioaccumulation
KW - Biomonitor
KW - Environmental Monitoring
KW - Environmental Pollutants
KW - Hydrochloric Acid
KW - Italy
KW - Lichens
KW - Mineralization
KW - Nitric Acid
KW - Trace Elements
KW - Acid extraction
KW - Air pollution
KW - Baseline
KW - Bioaccumulation
KW - Biomonitor
KW - Environmental Monitoring
KW - Environmental Pollutants
KW - Hydrochloric Acid
KW - Italy
KW - Lichens
KW - Mineralization
KW - Nitric Acid
KW - Trace Elements
UR - http://hdl.handle.net/10447/413098
M3 - Article
VL - 191
SP - 1
EP - 16
JO - Environmental Monitoring and Assessment
JF - Environmental Monitoring and Assessment
SN - 0167-6369
ER -