Assessment of ultrasound-assisted extraction as sample pre-treatment for the measurement of lead isotope ratios in marine biological tissues by multicollector inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry

In this work, ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE) was evaluated as a sample preparation procedure for lead isotope ratio measurements in marine biological tissues by multicollector inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry. 20 mg of marine biological tissue and 1 mL of acid extractant were sonicated for 3 min at 60% ultrasound amplitude. Matrix separation was performed in the supernatant using a chromatographic exchange resin (Sr-Spec™). Total elimination of organic matter was achieved during the separation step. Microwave-assisted digestion and dry-ashing were used for comparative purposes. No significant differences were found in lead isotope ratios at 95% of confidence level. UAE emerges as an advantageous alternative to classical methods for sample preparation owing to its simplicity and rapidity (i.e. operation steps were reduced), low reagent consumption and low contamination risks.