Determination of trace elements in Tillandsia usneoides by neutron activation analysis for environmental biomonitoring

Neutron activation analysis was applied to the determination of the element s AL As, Ba, Br, Cl, Co, Cr, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, Mo, Na, Rb, Sb, Sc, Ti, Th, V, Zn, and the rare earths La, Ce, Nd, Sm, Eu, Th and Yb in the epiphytic brom eliad Tillandsia usneoides. The samples were collected at an unpolluted are a and exposed in different sites of the city of Sao Paulo, Brazil, and in a control site outside Sao Paulo. The results obtained showed an accumulatio n of Al, As, Cr, Fe, Mo, Sb, Ti, V and Zn elements in Tillandsia usneoides exposed in polluted sites, indicating a promising potential of this species as a biomonitor of air pollution in Sao Paulo.