Determination of Chromium in Biological Material by Electrothermal Atomic Absorption Spectrometry Method

Procedure for determination of chromium in biological materials by Zeeman graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry method using a Perkin-Elmer spectrometer equipped with hollow-cathode lamp at 357.9 nm was developed. The samples of animal tissues, food, and feed were digested in muffle furnace at 450ºC. The ash was dissolved in 1 N hydrochloric acid and the final solution was diluted in 0.2% nitric acid. Magnesium nitrate (1%) was used as a matrix modifier. The method was validated in terms of basic analytical parameters. The mean recoveries of chromium was 84.4% for muscle, 79.0% for canned meat, and 80.2% for feed, and analytical detection limit was 0.003 μg/g. Certified reference materials were used for analytical quality assurance. The proposed analytical procedure is well adapted for monitoring chromium content in food and feedstuffs. Content of total chromium in the tested samples (animal muscles and liver) was low and was situated in the range of 0.031-0.101 mg/kg (muscles) and 0.047-0.052 mg/kg (liver).