Determination of cadmium by electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry after microwave-assisted digestion of animal tissues and sewage sludges.

The determination of cadmium in different sample types has been carried out by electrothermal atomization atomic absorption spectrometry with D(2)-background correction using a unpyrocoated graphite tube, after pressurized microwave-assisted digestion. Five chemical modifiers [(NH(4))(2)HPO(4), Pd(NO)(3))(2), Ni(NO(3))(2), thiourea and Triton X-100] have been assayed and nickel nitrate has been found to be most effective for an accurate determination of cadmium in mussel tissue, pig kidney and sewage sludge. The characteristic mass of the method is of the order of 1 pg and the limit of detection is lower than 0.1 ng/ml.