A group of scientists from China investigated the potassium isotopic composition of different plant reference materials using multi-collector inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (MC-ICP-MS). Their work was published in Spectrochimica Acta Part B: Atomic Spectroscopy (1).
Potassium. Kalium. Alkali metals. Chemical Element of Mendeleev's Periodic Table. Potassium in square cube creative concept. | Image Credit: © Aleksander - stock.adobe.com
In this study, the potassium isotopic composition (δ41K) of five certified plant reference materials (BCR 679, GSV-2, GSB-2a, GSB-3 and GSB-6a) with varying potassium concentrations was assessed using MC-ICP-MS. This system employed a reduced radio frequency (RF) forward power and low-resolution mode without a collision cell. The δ41K values of the plant reference materials (BCR 679, GSV-2, GSB-2a, GSB-3 and GSB-6a) were recorded as −2.44 ± 0.03‰, −0.37 ± 0.04‰, −0.37 ± 0.05‰, −1.27 ± 0.04‰ and − 0.62 ± 0.01‰, respectively. According to the study, the δ41K values of plants being presented in this study allowed a methodology for pre-treatment and determination of δ41K in plants to be established. δ41K is now believed to have potential as a notable tracer in ecosystems’ “soil-plant systems”, though further research is needed in this regard (1).
Potassium (K) is crucial for living cells to function. It specifically holds significant importance as a nutrient for plants, comprising up to 10% of plant biomass on a dry weight basis. However, despite being abundant in soil, there is a lack of K availability for plants, which places great importance on understanding the K cycle in soil-plant systems. One recent avenue of analysis is developing high-precision stable K isotopic composition analysis, which allows for the study of both K concentration and isotopic fractionation (1).
Three potassium isotopes exist in nature, 39K, 40K, 41K, with 39K and 40K being the most stable K isotopes. Using MC-ICP-MS, scientists have been able to improve isotope ratio measurements. This enables precision K isotopic analysis to be routinely achieved with precision better than 0.06%. High-precision K isotopic analysis can be achieved using two different approaches. The first involves using high-resolution mode to segregate Ar hydrides and K after the suppression of Ar through the reduction of radio frequency (RF) forward power using cold plasma. The second approach uses the “collision gas” strategy to eliminate Ar-based ionic species.
(1) He, M-Y.; Ren, T. X.; Jin, Z. D.; Deng, L.; Liu, H. J.; Cheng, Y. Y.; Li, Z. Y.; Liu, X. X.; Yang, Y.; Chang, H. Precise Analysis of Potassium Isotopic Composition in Plant Materials By Multi-Collector Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry. Spectrochim. Acta Part B At. Spectrosc. 2023, 209, 106781. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sab.2023.106781
A Brief Review of the Latest Spectroscopic Research in Environmental Analysis
June 18th 2024Spectroscopic analytical techniques are crucial for the analysis of environmental samples. This review emphasizes the latest advancements in several key spectroscopic methods, including atomic, vibrational, molecular, electronic, and X-ray techniques. The applications of these analytical methods in detecting contaminants and other environmental applications are thoroughly discussed.