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Application of Three Spectrometric Methods to Total Selenium Determination in Postmortem Material in Case of Acute Selenium Compound Poisoning

NCJ Number
234452
Journal
Journal of Forensic Sciences Volume: 56 Issue: 2 Dated: March 2011 Pages: 518-521
Author(s)
Renata Wietecha-Postuszny, Ph.D.; Teresa Lech, Ph.D.; Pawel Koscielniak, Ph.D.
Date Published
March 2011
Length
4 pages
Annotation
Three spectrometric methods, that is, spectrofluorimetry (SF), atomic absorption spectrometry with electrothermal atomization (ET-AAS), and atomic fluorescence spectrometry with hydride generation (HG-AFS) were used for the determination of total selenium in biological samples taken from postmortem material in a case of acute selenium compound poisoning.
Abstract
The precision of the SF, ET-AAS, and HG-AFS methods (RSD, n=10) was found to be in the ranges of 10.0-15.0, 3.0-6.0 and 1.0-1.5 percent, respectively, and the detection limit was 10.0, 4.0, and 0.1 ìg/L of Se, respectively. In the case of HG-AFS, the analytical procedure takes less time and is less laborious than the other methods considered. The obtained results show the usefulness of the HG-AFS method as a supplementary analytical tool to the SF and ET-AAS methods with respect to the determination of selenium as well as the possibility of using this method as a primary one in forensic toxicology practice. (Published Abstract)