RAPID PROCEDURES FOR COBALT AND NICKEL DETERMINATION IN SLURRIED FOODSAMPLES BY ELECTROTHERMAL ATOMIC-ABSORPTION SPECTROMETRY

Electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometric (ETAAS) procedures are discussed for the rapid determination of cobalt and nickel in slurried food samples. The suspension medium, containing 0.025% of Triton X-10 0, 1% nitric acid, and 10% hydrogen peroxide, was used to prevent buil dup of carbonaceous residue inside the atomizer. Wall atomization was carried out, allowing calibration with aqueous standards. Detection li mits were 36 and 42 ng/g for cobalt and nickel, respectively. A mild c alcination procedure is also proposed for materials containing low cob alt concentrations (detection limit 4 ng/g cobalt). The accuracy of th e results was checked against three standard reference materials.