Accelerator-based trace element analysis of foods and agriculture products

An accelerator-based analytical method for measuring trace elements in foods and agricultural products was developed, optimized, validated and compared using reference standards. The method’s initial phase is a new, rapid and effective digestion process of a small mass analyte in an aqueous media containing H2O2. Digestion is initiated by radicals formed in water with pulsed UV (PUV) induced (laser) photolysis, which rapidly react with organic matter. After digestion, trace metals are pre-concentrated as carbamates and deposited as thin targets onto Teflon filters. Conventional particle induced X-ray emission (PIXE) or X-ray fluorescence (XRF) methods are then used to analyze elements in the sample. When foods and other agricultural commodities (i.e., soils, feeds) are analyzed, the combined method named pulsed UV (PUV)/PIXE results in enhanced detection of trace elements such as Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn and Pb at ∼1 mg/kg (1 ppm) levels, without lengthy, acid-based digestions. It provides improvements in digestion kinetics and processing time enhancing analytical sensitivity and element recovery. Precision and recovery yields were confirmed with food reference standards. The analysis of edible foods from contaminated agricultural areas is also reported.