Abstract
Speciation analysis is a key aspect of modern analytical chemistry, as the toxicity, environmental mobility, and bioavailability of elemental analytes are known to depend strongly on an element’s chemical species. Henceforth, great efforts have been made in recent years to develop methods that allow not only the determination of elements as a whole, but also each of its separate species. Environmental analytical chemistry has not ignored this trend, and this review aims to summarize the latest methods and techniques developed with this purpose. From the perspective of each relevant element and highlighting the importance of their speciation analysis, different sample treatment methods are introduced and described, with the spotlight on the use of modern nanomaterials and novel solvents in solid phase and liquid-liquid microextractions. In addition, an in-depth discussion of instrumental techniques aimed both at the separation and quantification of metal and metalloid species is presented, ranging from chromatographic separations to electro-chemical speciation analysis. Special emphasis is made throughout this work on the greenness of these developments, considering their alignment with the precepts of the Green Chemistry concept and critically reviewing their environmental impact.
Highlights
Life sciences constantly profit from innovative analytical methods
This review aims to summarize the latest developments in the field of metal and metalloid speciation analysis in environmental matrices, with the spotlight set on reports from the last five years
The application of microextraction techniques and novel sorbents and solvents designed for miniaturized methods has minimized the use of reagents, which is beneficial for ments have not been satisfactorily met through the development of the so-called hyphenated analytical methods which, despite this detail, have hitherto occupied a central place in the field of speciation analysis, mainly due to their practicality, easy automation, and analytical frequency [25]
Summary
Life sciences constantly profit from innovative analytical methods. To this point, these methods mainly refer to the identification, separation, and quantification of chemical entities in samples as diverse as water, soils or sediments, plants, biological fluids, tissues and organs, among many others [1]. It is evident that the speciation analysis of an element present in an environmental sample is a fundamental need in order to obtain exact results on the risk of exposure, especially considering that these species can be highly toxic and can enter food chains through different pathways [6]. Taking this into account, the ongoing development and application of advanced analytical methods are crucial activities in current analytical laboratories to identify and quantify species in concentrations in the order of traces (μg L−1 or lower) [7]. Special emphasis is made throughout this work to critically evaluate the greenness of the presented methods and to assess their environmental impact, making it a descriptive review of analytical applications, and an integrated analysis of their novelty and sustainability
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