Determination of iodine in cereal grains and standard reference materials by neutron activation analysis

Trace amounts of iodine in thirty-eight cereal grain samples cultivated at different locations in Austria were determined for the first time in this study by radiochemical neutron activation analysis. For the dissolution of cereal grain samples and standard reference materials, two different procedures, alkaline and acidic dissolution, were applied in the presence of an iodine carrier. Rapid and simple dissolution procedure with acidic solution was demonstrated in this study. The analytical values in the cereal grain as well as in the standard reference materials obtained by the different dissolution procedures were in good agreement within one standard deviation. The iodine in cereal grains and the standard reference materials ranged from 0.002 to 0.03 mug g(-1) and 0.0015 to 0.30 mug g(-1), respectively. The distribution of relative standard deviation (RSD) for iodine concentration below 0.01 mug g(-1) were 21 % and 24 % of all data for the range 1-10 % RSD and 11-20 % RSD. respectively. The g RSD for 0.1 mug g(-1) of iodine concentrations were around 10 %.