DETERMINATION OF NICKEL IN FRENCH WINES AND GRAPES

The study determines nickel concentration in French wines and grapes a nd traces possible sources of contamination in wine using graphite fur nace atomic absorption spectrometry. The standard additions method was used to verify the accuracy of the method. The precision and accuracy were tested to confirm the reliability of this method. Ni concentrati ons ranged from 5.4 to 87.9 mu g/L in red wine, from 7.5 to 74.5 mu g/ L in white wine, from 19.5 to 24.6 mu g/L in rose wine, and from 8.9 t o 26.9 mu g/L in Champagne. Ni concentration in grapes ranged from 4.2 to 94.0 mu g/kg. For a given vineyard and winery, Ni concentration in wine increased with the period of storage suggesting Ni contamination from stainless steel storage tanks and Ni-containing pigments of bott les during the storage of wines. Total Ni daily dietary intake for fre nch population from wine consumption was calculated to be 4.37 mu g/da y/resident. The daily contribution of Ni from wine in dietary intake m ay be as high as 7%.