Atomic spectrometry update. Environmental analysis

This is the twenty-first annual review published in JAAS of the application of atomic spectrometry to the chemical analysis of environmental samples. In the analysis of air, there is ongoing development of instrumentation for the interrogation of particles at the nanometre scale. It would seem that there is continuing interest in the measurement of trace levels of mercury species in the atmosphere, particularly those emissions from point sources such as coal-fired power stations. In the analysis of water, elemental speciation protocols have again received considerable attention and there is a renewed trend for using methods based on vapour generation for the determination of selected elements. Dominant themes in the analysis of soils include the application of sequential extraction techniques and the continuing development of speciation protocols for elements such as As, Hg and Se. Laser ablation is readily being adopted as a solid sampling tool in many geochemical laboratories. In a similar vein, multi-collector ICP-MS is increasingly being used to perform high precision isotope ratio measurements. Not only is the focus on developing robust measurement procedures for routine use but also on carrying out more fundamental work, designed to increase our understanding of these techniques.