H.E.J. Research Institute of Chemistry, International Center for Chemical and Biological Sciences, University of Karachi, Karachi, Pakistan.
Dr. Panjwani Center for Molecular Medicine and Drug Research, International Center for Chemical and Biological Sciences, University of Karachi, Karachi, Pakistan.
Food Addit Contam Part A Chem Anal Control Expo Risk Assess. 2019 Dec;36(12):1769-1776. doi: 10.1080/19440049.2019.1671990. Epub 2019 Oct 11.
Calcium carbide (CaC) is widely used as the low price artificial ripening agent of fruits. It may contain traces of heavy metals which can make fruits harmful for human consumption. This study aimed to assess heavy metals present in commercial-grade CaC and subsequently their quantification in mango peels for the identification of possible marker elements as an indicator of CaC ripening. Samples were prepared by using microwave-assisted digestion followed by multi-elemental quantitative analysis using inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). In commercial grade CaC samples, the concentrations of analysed metals were found to be in the range of 0.6-540.92 µg/g with given order Fe>Zn>Mn>Cr>Pb>Cu>Ag>As>Ni>Co>Cd. The CaC-treated mango peels showed elevated levels of Fe, Co, As, and Pb in comparison to untreated mango peels ( < 0.05).
碳化钙（CaC）被广泛用作廉价的水果人工催熟剂。它可能含有痕量重金属，这些重金属会使水果对人体食用有害。本研究旨在评估商业级 CaC 中存在的重金属，随后在芒果皮中对其进行定量分析，以确定可能的标记元素作为 CaC 催熟的指标。使用微波辅助消解对样品进行预处理，然后采用电感耦合等离子体质谱法（ICP-MS）进行多元素定量分析。在商业级 CaC 样品中，分析金属的浓度范围为 0.6-540.92µg/g，其含量顺序为 Fe>Zn>Mn>Cr>Pb>Cu>Ag>As>Ni>Co>Cd。与未处理的芒果皮相比，CaC 处理过的芒果皮中 Fe、Co、As 和 Pb 的含量升高（ < 0.05）。
