Monitoring of some selected heavy metals throughout the brewing process of craft beers by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry

Abstract

Herbicides, fungicides and bactericides containing\ud heavy metals used in agriculture make it possible\ud to find these toxic metals in beer (Čejka et al. in Ecol\ud Chem Eng S 18:67–74, 2011). The aim of this work was to\ud monitor the distribution of some toxic heavy metals such\ud as cadmium (Cd), chromium (Cr), copper (Cu), nickel\ud (Ni), lead (Pb) zinc (Zn), iron (Fe) and arsenic (As) during\ud craft beers production (three types of beer produced in\ud four different breweries). The instrumental method adopted\ud in this investigation was inductively coupled plasma mass\ud spectrometry. The collected results demonstrated how a\ud very low (μg/L) heavy metal contamination (mainly Cr, Zn\ud and Cu) was provided by raw materials (water, malt, hops\ud and yeasts) and that these toxic metals mostly pass into the\ud residuals (spent grains, hot trub and yeasts), so only a negligible\ud fraction of them can be detected in beer. For example,\ud treating hops with a high dose of pesticides containing Cu\ud did not cause an increase in its content in final beer because\ud a large part of copper remains in hot trub. Furthermore, the\ud filtration phase caused the increase in the concentration of\ud Cd, Zn, Fe and As, probably due to the use of filtration aids.\ud These increases were insignificant healthwise [http://www.\ud edqm.eu/en/Metals-and-alloys-used-in-food-contact-materials-\ud and-articles-1st-Edition-(CouncilofEurope,2002)].\ud The craft beers produced without the final filtration did not present this increase. Pb and Ni were always found below\ud the detection limits

The Mineral Profile of Polish Beers by Fast Sequential Multielement HR CS FAAS Analysis and Its Correlation with Total Phenolic Content and Antioxidant Activity by Chemometric Methods

“…Some salts (e.g., CaSO 4 , MgSO 4 , ZnSO 4 , and CaCl 2 ) are added throughout the brewing process in order to control pH, adjust the taste, improve efficiency, and enhance the fermentation performance. Sources of metals in beer have been studied, and several investigators have examined their fate during the brewing, fermentation, and clarification processes [3,4]. It is known that numerous metals play an important role in the physiological processes of yeast.…”

“…Typical techniques used for the determination of metals in beers include flame atomic absorption spectrometry (FAAS) [9][10][11], graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry (GFAAS) [12,13], inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) [9,10,14,15], and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) [3,[16][17][18]. Since direct aspiration of beer results in flame/plasma fluctuations, the formation of solid deposits on the burner head [9,12], or clogging of the nebulizer, the analysis of metals is usually performed in digested samples.…”

“…Since direct aspiration of beer results in flame/plasma fluctuations, the formation of solid deposits on the burner head [9,12], or clogging of the nebulizer, the analysis of metals is usually performed in digested samples. Digestion of beer was carried out using concentrated HNO 3 [16,17], or mixtures of HNO 3 and 30% H 2 O 2 [9,11,15,19], H 2 SO 4 and H 2 O 2 [10], and HF [3] in open and closed systems. In order to minimize the influence of organic residue on the efficiency of atom/ion formation of elements, the standard addition method is usually recommended for calibration.…”

Recent Advances and Perspective on Design and Synthesis of Electrode Materials for Electrochemical Sensing of Heavy Metals

“…While fast response, high sensitivity, and wide sensing spectrum are the generally required parameters for sensing, ease of operation with low cost is also highly demanded. Conventional benchtop techniques such as inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP‐OES), UV–Vis spectrometry, atomic absorption/emission spectroscopy, and laser‐induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) are generally located in high‐level laboratories with professional personnel, which are not suitable for fast, inexpensive, and in situ measurements without tedious sample preparation. The growing demand for real‐time on‐site monitoring of water quality for human health and the environment requires a competitively sensitive and reliable method with low cost and less environmental pressure.…”

Characterization of Romanian Craft Beers Based on Chemical Composition and Microbiological Analysis

“…While the most important players in this sector are seeking answers on the possible new trends in beer consumption, many studies are directed to assess the quality of craft beer (Passaghe et al, 2015;Aquilani et al, 2015;Giovenzana et al, 2014). A key issue facing the craft beer producers is related to constant quality assurance and food safety.…”