Rapid and Simple Determination of Multi-Elements in Aerosol Samples Collected on Quartz Fiber Filters by Using EDXRF Coupled with Fundamental Parameter Quantification Technique

Abstract

It would be convenient if we could achieve multi-component (organic and inorganic species) analysis using just one quartz fiber filter (QFF) as an aerosol collection medium. In general, QFF have been used for analyzing carbonaceous materials in aerosols. This study shows a nondestructive, rapid, and simple method using EDXRF (Energy Dispersive X-Ray Fluorescence spectrometry) that has secondary targets and three-dimensional polarization optics for analyzing inorganic multi-elements in aerosols collected on QFFs. Multi-element analysis can be achieved by using EDXRF coupled with fundamental parameter (FP) quantification, as speed of up to 900 s (15 min) per sample. The EDXRF-FP method shows good repeatability, with generally less than 5% variation when measuring each analyzed element. While the elemental concentrations in the blank QFFs in any lots examined in this study could be considered to be lower than the actual samples, the blank level of Ni cannot be ignored. The EDXRF-FP results for each element of the aerosols collected on QFF agreed well with ICP-MS and ICP-AES results. The temporal variations of the selected elements in aerosols obtained by EDXRF-FP showed very good agreement with those obtained by ICP-MS and AES, and thus this method is suitable for elucidating day-to-day variations of multi-elements in aerosols.

An integrated approach for the chemical characterization and oxidative potential assessment of indoor PM2.5

“…The most commonly used instrumental analytical techniques for multi-elemental determination in PM 2.5 samples are either inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry (ICP-AES) or inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) [28,39], as well as instrumental neutron activation analysis [38], proton-induced X-ray emission (PIXE) [14,40,41] and energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence spectrometry [3,5,10]. The methodological limitations of the aforementioned techniques have been recently compiled [42]. As the predominant exposure pathway of humans to PM is through the airlung fluid interface having a near neutral pH [43], many elements from PM may readily pass across this compartment in water-soluble forms.…”

A Case Study of PM2.5 Characterization in Bangi, Selangor, Malaysia during the Southwest Monsoon Season

“…In this study, eight metals (Al, Si, K, Ca, Ti, Fe, Zn, and Pb) were quantified. A detailed description of the quantification procedure, MDL, precision, and accuracy have been provided elsewhere (Okuda et al, 2013(Okuda et al, , 2014.…”

Persulfate Wet Oxidation Method for the Determination of Total Phosphorus in Atmospheric Aerosols and Its Application for a Year-round Observation in Beijing

“…Thirteen elements (Al, S, K, Ca, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Ni, Cu, Zn, and Pb) were measured in this study. A detailed procedure for the multi-elemental analysis is described elsewhere (Okuda and Hatoya, 2013;Okuda et al, 2013a). Phosphorus concentrations could be measured by EDXRF; however, in this study they were undetectable through this method since the concentrations were almost always below the detection limit.…”

“…The site was located 15 km northwest of the center of Beijing city, China (Okuda et al, 2013a(Okuda et al, , b, 2011(Okuda et al, , 2008. This site could be considered a good representative of the entire area of Beijing city in terms of the concentrations of particulate matter (Okuda et al, 2004).…”