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DETERMINATION OF TRACE AMOUNTS OF SELENIUM IN CORN, LETTUCE, POTATOES, SOYBEANS, AND WHEAT BY HYDRIDE GENERATION/CONDENSATION AND FLAME ATOMIC ABSORPTION SPECTROMETRY
Citation:
Harn, M., R. Kuennen, J. Caruso, AND F. Fricke. DETERMINATION OF TRACE AMOUNTS OF SELENIUM IN CORN, LETTUCE, POTATOES, SOYBEANS, AND WHEAT BY HYDRIDE GENERATION/CONDENSATION AND FLAME ATOMIC ABSORPTION SPECTROMETRY. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, D.C., EPA/600/J-81/608.
Description:
Because of the nutritional and toxicological significance of low selenium concentrations in agricultural crops, a procedure utilizing wet digestion followed by hydride generation/condensation-flame atomic absorption was developed for the routine analysis of selenium in different varieties of soybeans, wheat, potatoes, lettuce, and sweet corn. The lowest quantifiable level, based on 2 g of sample, is 1 ng/g (dry weight) for all crop types studied. The precision for the total analysis is 3.7% relative standard deviation (RSD) at a mean concentration of 100 ng/g and 13% RSD at a mean concentration of 1 ng/g. Sample recoveries, precision studies, and analyses of NBS reference materials demonstrate the reliability and accuracy of this technique. A summary of results for 830 crop samples is reported.