Inductively coupled atomic emission spectrometry and neutron activation analysis for the determination of element reference values in human lung tissue.

An investigation was undertaken in order to assess the performance of neutron activation analysis and inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry techniques for determining reference values for minor and trace elements in human lungs of urban subjects. Results show that in both instances experimental conditions must be carefully optimized to guarantee reliability of experimental data. Strict criteria for tissue sampling and pretreatment also had to be set. Provisional reference values for ca. 50 elements could thus be established.