Journal
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
Volume 407, Issue 13, Pages 4140-4148Publisher
ELSEVIER
DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2009.02.020
Keywords
Wool analysis; Hair analysis; Washing procedures; Wool colour; Trace metals
Categories
Funding
- Quality of Life Programme (Environment) of the European Commission [QLRT-2001-02723]
- The Leverhulme Trust [F/00 182/R]
Ask authors/readers for more resources
No standard or wholly proven method to determine the trace metal status of human or animal 'hair' yet exists. It is well known that hair-metal concentrations are highly influenced by washing procedures applied before analysis. A novel method to determine the efficiency of washing procedures at removing exogenous contaminants was devised. It was shown that suitability of washing procedures was element-specific and increased sonication time during washing progressively removed more Mn and Zn from sheep wool. The efficiency of exogenous contaminant removal by including sonication during washing was also dependant on the efficiency of procedures under study. The Cu, Mn and Zn concentration, and thus exogenous contaminant level, of sheep wool increased in tandem with its age. Additionally, Cu and Zn concentrations of black wool were significantly higher than white wool: a relationship ascribed to melanins. This investigation shows the necessity to standardise procedures used during analysis of 'hair' fibres, and to assess each washing procedure for each element before performing routine analysis. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available