Determination of vanadium in urine by electrothermal atomisation atomic absorption spectrometry with graphite tube pre-heating

Abstract

A solvent extraction electrothermal atomisation atomic absoprtion spectrometric method for determining vanadium in urine by pre-heating the graphite tubes (at 150 °C) before sample injection is described. A ten-fold increase in sensitivity was achieved together with an improvement in analytical accuracy (i.e., precision, linearity and repeatability). The values for urinary vanadium (mean value, 0.29 µg l–1; standard deviation, 0.17 µg l–1) measured for a non-occupationally exposed group (38 males, aged 41.4 ± 15.1 years) are in good agreement with the results obtained in other studies. The physico-chemical mechanism is discussed and the necessity for further studies to be undertaken on the determination of vanadium in serum and on the determination of other metals of toxicological interest is stressed.