TY - JOUR A1 - von der Au, Marcus A1 - Borovinskaya, O. A1 - Flamigni, L. A1 - Kuhlmeier, K. A1 - Büchel, C. A1 - Meermann, Björn T1 - Single cell-inductively coupled plasma-time of flight-mass spectrometry approach for ecotoxicological testing N2 - Diatoms play a key role in assessing the eco-toxicology of metals and are already part of several national and international guidelines and regulations. Data on metal uptake and its correlation with a natural metal composition of the diatoms are mostly lacking on a cellular basis - mainly due to the lack of a suitable method on both the preparation and detection side. Therefore, within this work a fully automated approach based on the on-line coupling of a high performance liquid chromatograph (HPLC) and an inductively coupled plasma-time of flight-mass spectrometer (ICP-ToF-MS) was applied to analyze single cells of the alga Cyclotella meneghiniana multi-elementally in order to provide a deeper insight into the metal composition and its response to environmental stress. Multi-elemental analysis in single diatoms also enables assessment of combined toxicity of a set of metals. A set of four fingerprint elements, characteristically for diatoms (Mg, P, Si, Fe), were identified and hence the investigation of environmental stress onto the cells was enabled by performing incubation experiments with environmentally relevant toxic elements. It could be shown at moderate environmental stress caused by increasing the metal concentration in the medium (zinc) that the fingerprint element concentrations remained stable and thus the suitability of the selected elements for algae tracing was demonstrated. With regard to further ecotoxicological assessments, a multivariate approach was successfully applied allowing for cell classification upon different incubation concentration levels. This multivariate approach also facilitated an effective identification of three different diatom species (Cyclotella meneghiniana, Thalassiosira weissflogii and Thalassiosira pseudonana). KW - ICP-TOF-MS KW - Ecotoxicological Testing KW - Diatoms PY - 2020 DO - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.algal.2020.101964 VL - 49 SP - 101964 PB - Elsevier B.V. AN - OPUS4-50875 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Zimmermann, T. A1 - von der Au, Marcus A1 - Reese, A. A1 - Klein, O. A1 - Hildebrandt, L. A1 - Pröfrock, D. T1 - Substituting HF by HBF4 – an optimized digestion method for multi-elemental sediment analysis via ICP-MS/MS N2 - Determination of elemental mass fractions in sediments plays a major role in evaluating the environmental status of aquatic ecosystems. Herewith, the optimization of a new total digestion protocol and the subsequent analysis of 48 elements in different sediment reference materials (NIST SRM 2702, GBW 07313, GBW 07311 and JMC-2) based on ICP-MS/MS detection is presented. The developed method applies microwave acid digestion and utilizes HBF4 as fluoride source for silicate decomposition. Similar to established protocols based on HF, HBF4 ensures the dissolution of the silicate matrix, as well as other refractory oxides. As HBF4 is not acutely toxic; no special precautions have to be made and digests can be directly measured via ICP-MS without specific sample inlet systems, evaporation steps or the addition of e.g. H3BO3, in order to mask excess HF. Different acid mixtures with and without HBF4 were evaluated in terms of digestion efficiency based on the trace metal recovery. The optimized protocol (5 mL HNO3, 2 mL HCL, 1 mL HBF4) allows a complete dissolution of the analyzed reference materials, as well as quantitative recoveries for a wide variety of certified analytes. Low recoveries for e.g. Sr, Ba and rare earth elements due to fluoride precipitation of HF-based digestions protocols, can be avoided by the usage of HBF4 instead. Based on the usage of high purity HBF4 all relevant trace, as well as matrix elements can be analyzed with sufficiently low LOQs (0.002 μg L−1 for U up to 6.7 μg L−1 for Al). In total, 34 elements were within a recovery range of 80%–120% for all three analyzed reference materials GBW 07313, GBW 07311 and JMC-2. 14 elements were outside a recovery range of 80%–120% for at least one of the analyzed reference materials. KW - Reference Materials KW - Sediment KW - HF free Digestion PY - 2020 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-510480 DO - https://doi.org/10.1039/D0AY01049A SP - 1 EP - 10 PB - Royal Society of Chemistry AN - OPUS4-51048 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Gehrenkemper, Lennart A1 - Simon, Fabian A1 - Roesch, Philipp A1 - Fischer, E. A1 - von der Au, Marcus A1 - Pfeifer, Jens A1 - Cossmer, Antje A1 - Wittwer, Philipp A1 - Vogel, Christian A1 - Simon, Franz-Georg A1 - Meermann, Björn T1 - Determination of organically bound fluorine sum parameters in river water samples - Comparison of combustion ion chromatography (CIC) and high resolution-continuum source-graphite furnace molecular absorption spectrometry (HR-CS-GFMAS) N2 - In this study, we compare combustion ion chromatography (CIC) and high resolution-continuum source-graphite furnace molecular absorption spectrometry (HR-CS-GFMAS) with respect to their applicability for determining organically Bound fluorine sum parameters. Extractable (EOF) and adsorbable (AOF) organically bound fluorine as well as total fluorine (TF) were measured in samples fromriver Spree in Berlin, Germany, to reveal the advantages and disadvantages of the two techniques used as well as the two established fluorine sum Parameters AOF and EOF. TF concentrations determined via HR-CS-GFMAS and CIC were comparable between 148 and 270 μg/L. On average, AOF concentrations were higher than EOF concentrations, with AOF making up 0.14–0.81% of TF (determined using CIC) and EOF 0.04–0.28% of TF (determined using HR-CSGFMAS). The results obtained by the two independent methods were in good agreement. It turned out that HR-CS-GFMAS is a more sensitive and precise method for fluorine analysis compared to CIC. EOF and AOF are comparable tools in Risk evaluation for the emerging pollutants per- and polyfluorinated alkyl substances; however, EOF is much faster to conduct. KW - High resolution-continuum source-graphite furnace molecular absorption spectrometry (HR-CS-GFMAS) KW - Combustion ion chromatography (CIC) KW - Per- and polyfluorinated alkyl substances (PFASs) KW - Adsorbable organically bound fluorine (AOF) KW - Extractable organically bound fluorine (EOF) KW - Surface waters PY - 2020 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-515351 DO - https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-020-03010-y SN - 1618-2650 VL - 413 IS - 28 SP - 103 EP - 115 PB - Springer CY - Berlin AN - OPUS4-51535 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Weber, A. A1 - von Randow, M. A1 - Voigt, A.-L. A1 - von der Au, Marcus A1 - Fischer, E. A1 - Meermann, Björn A1 - Wagner, M. T1 - Ingestion and toxicity of microplastics in the freshwater gastropodLymnaea stagnalis: No microplastic-induced effects alone or incombination with copper N2 - The interaction of microplastics with freshwater biota and their interaction with other stressors is still not very well understood. Therefore, we investigated the ingestion, excretion and toxicity of microplastics in the freshwater gastropod Lymnaea stagnalis. MP ingestion was analyzed as tissues levels in L. stagnalis after 6–96 h of exposure to 5–90 μm spherical polystyrene (PS) microplastics. To understand the excretion, tissue levels were determined after 24 h of exposure followed by a 12 h–7 d depuration period. To assess the toxicity, snails were exposed for 28 d to irregular PS microplastics (<63 μm, 6.4–100,000 particles mL−1), both alone and in combination with copper as additional stressor. To compare the toxicity of natural and synthetic particles, we also included diatomite particles. Microplastics ingestion and excretion significantly depended on the particle size and the exposure/depuration duration. An exposure to irregular PS had no effect on survival, reproduction, energy reserves and oxidative stress. However, we observed slight effects on immune cell phagocytosis. Exposure to microplastics did not exacerbate the reproductive toxicity of copper. In addition, there was no pronounced difference between the effects of microplastics and diatomite. The tolerance towards microplastics may originate from an adaptation of L. stagnalis to particle-rich environments or a general stress resilience. In conclusion, despite high uptake rates, PS fragments do not appear to be a relevant stressor for stress tolerant freshwater gastropods considering current environmental levels of microplastics. KW - Lymnaea stagnalis KW - Microplastic-induced effects KW - Mixture toxicity PY - 2020 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-513551 DO - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2020.128040 VL - 263 SP - 128040 PB - Elsevier Ltd. AN - OPUS4-51355 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Hildebrandt, L. A1 - von der Au, Marcus A1 - Zimmermann, T. A1 - Reese, A. A1 - Ludwig, J. A1 - Pröfrock, D. T1 - A metrologically traceable protocol for the quantification of trace metals in different types of microplastic N2 - The presence of microplastic (MP) particles in aquatic environments raised concern About possible enrichment of organic and inorganic pollutants due to their specific surface and chemical properties. In particular the role of metals within this context is still poorly understood. Therefore, the aim of this work was to develop a fully validated acid digestion protocol for metal analysis in different polymers, which is a prerequisite to study such interactions. The proposed digestion protocol was validated using six different certified reference materials in the microplastic size range consisting of polyethylene, polypropylene, acrylonitrile butadiene styrene and polyvinyl chloride. As ICP-MS/MS enabled time-efficient, sensitive and robust analysis of 56 metals in one measurement, the method was suitable to provide mass fractions for a multitude of other elements beside the certified ones (As, Cd, Cr, Hg, Pb, Sb, Sn and Zn). Three different microwaves, different acid mixtures as well as different temperatures in combination with different hold times were tested for optimization purposes. With the exception of Cr in acrylonitrile butadiene styrene, recovery rates obtained using the optimized protocol for all six certified reference materials fell within a range from 95.9% ± 2.7% to 112% ± 7%. Subsequent optimization further enhanced both precision and recoveries ranging from 103% ± 5% to 107 ± 4% (U; k = 2 (n = 3)) for all certified metals (incl. Cr) in acrylonitrile butadiene styrene. The results clearly show the analytical challenges that come along with metal analysis in chemically resistant plastics. Addressing specific analysis Tools for different sorption scenarios and processes as well as the underlying kinetics was beyond this study’s scope. However, the future application of the two recommended thoroughly validated total acid digestion protocols as a first step in the direction of harmonization of metal analysis in/on MP will enhance the significance and comparability of the generated data. It will contribute to a better understanding of the role of MP as vector for trace metals in the environment. KW - Microplatic KW - Digestion KW - Analytical Chemistry PY - 2020 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-510727 DO - https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0236120 VL - 15 IS - 7 SP - e0236120 AN - OPUS4-51072 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - von der Au, Marcus A1 - Karbach, H. A1 - Bell, A. M. A1 - Bauer, O. B. A1 - Karst, U. A1 - Meermann, Björn T1 - Determination of metal uptake in single organisms, Corophiumvolutator, via complementary electrothermal vaporization/inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry and laserablation/inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry N2 - Rationale: (Eco-)toxicological effects are mostly derived empirically and are notcorrelated with metal uptake. Furthermore, if the metal content is determined,mostly bulk analysis of the whole organism population is conducted; thus, biologicalvariability is completely disregarded, and this may lead to misleading results. Toovercome this issue, we compared two different solid sampling techniques for theanalysis of single organisms.Methods: In this study, complementary electrothermal vaporization/inductivelycoupled plasma mass spectrometry (ETV/ICP-MS) , laser ablation/inductivelycoupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA/ICP-MS)-based methods for the analysisof individual organisms were developed and the results obtained were comparedwith the concentrations obtained after digestion and measured using ICP-MS.For this purpose, a common (eco-)toxicological test organism, the mud shrimpCorophium volutator, was selected. As proof-of-concept application, these organismswere incubated with environmentally relevant metals from galvanic anodes, whichare often used for protection against metal corrosion in, for example, offshorewind farms.Results: The bulk analysis revealed that large quantities of the incubated elementswere detectable. Using the ETV/ICP-MS method, we could identify a highbiovariability within the population of organisms tested. Using the LA/ICP-MSmethod, it could be determined that the large quantities of the elements detectedwere due to adsorption of the metals and not due to uptake, which correlates wellwith the absence of (eco-)toxicological effects.Conclusions: The results obtained imply the efficiency of complementary methods toexplain the absence or presence of (eco-)toxicological effects. In particular, methodsthat allow for single-organism analysis or provide even a spatial resolution supportthe interpretation of ecotoxicological findings. KW - ICP-MS KW - Metal toxicity KW - Metal uptake KW - Corophium volutator KW - Seawater PY - 2021 DO - https://doi.org/10.1002/rcm.8953 VL - 35 IS - 2 SP - e8953 AN - OPUS4-52077 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Lange, M. A. A1 - Khan, I. A1 - Opitz, P. A1 - Hartmann, J: A1 - Ashraf, M. A1 - Qurashi, A. A1 - Prädel, L. A1 - Panthöfer, M. A1 - Cossmer, Antje A1 - Pfeifer, Jens A1 - Simon, Fabian A1 - von der Au, Marcus A1 - Meermann, Björn A1 - Mondeshki, M. A1 - Tahir, M. N. A1 - Tremel, W. T1 - A Generalized Method for High-Speed Fluorination of Metal Oxides by Spark Plasma Sintering Yields Ta3O7F and TaO2F with High Photocatalytic Activity for Oxygen Evolution from Water N2 - A general method to carry out the fluorination of metal oxides with poly(tetrafluoroethylene) (PTFE, Teflon) waste by spark plasma sintering (SPS) on a minute scale with Teflon is reported. The potential of this new approach is highlighted by the following results. i) The tantalum oxyfluorides Ta3O7F and TaO2F are obtained from plastic scrap without using toxic or caustic chemicals for fluorination. ii) Short reaction times (minutes rather than days) reduce the process time the energy costs by almost three orders of magnitude. iii) The oxyfluorides Ta3O7F and TaO2F are produced in gram amounts of nanoparticles. Their synthesis can be upscaled to the kg range with industrial sintering equipment. iv) SPS processing changes the catalytic properties: while conventionally prepared Ta3O7F and TaO2F show little catalytic activity, SPS-prepared Ta3O7F and TaO2F exhibit high activity for photocatalytic oxygen evolution, reaching photoconversion efficiencies up to 24.7% and applied bias to photoconversion values of 0.86%. This study shows that the materials properties are dictated by the processing which poses new challenges to understand and predict the underlying factors. KW - Fluorination KW - Oxygen evolution reaction KW - Photocatalysis KW - Spark plasma sintering KW - Tantalum oxyfluorides PY - 2021 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-524329 DO - https://doi.org/10.1002/adma.202007434 VL - 23 IS - 20 SP - 7434 PB - Wiley‐VCH GmbH AN - OPUS4-52432 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Faßbender, Sebastian A1 - von der Au, Marcus A1 - Koenig, Maren A1 - Pelzer, J. A1 - Piechotta, Christian A1 - Vogl, Jochen A1 - Meermann, Björn T1 - Species-specific isotope dilution analysis of monomethylmercury in sediment using GC/ICP-ToF-MS and comparison with ICP-Q-MS and ICP-SF-MS N2 - A recently introduced inductively coupled plasma-time-of-flight-mass spectrometer (ICP-ToF-MS) shows enhanced sensitivity compared to previous developments and superior isotope ratio precision compared to other ToF and commonly used single-collector ICP-MS instruments. Following this fact, an improvement for isotope dilution ICP-MS using the new instrumentation has been reported. This study aimed at investigating whether this improvement also meets the requirements of species-specific isotope dilution using GC/ICP-MS, where short transient signals are recorded. The results of the analysis of monomethylmercury (MMHg) of a sediment reference material show that isotope ratio precision of ICP-MS instruments equipped with quadrupole, sector-field, and time-of-flight mass analyzers is similar within a broad range of peak signal-to-noise ratio when analyzing one isotopic system. The procedural limit of quantification (LOQ) for MMHg, expressed as mass fraction of Hg being present as MMHg, w(Hg)MMHg, was similar as well for all investigated instruments and ranged between 0.003 and 0.016 μg/kg. Due to the simultaneous detection capability, the ICP-ToF-MS might, however, be more favorable when several isotopic systems are analyzed within one measurement. In a case study, the GC/ICP-ToF-MS coupling was applied for analysis of MMHg in sediments of Finow Canal, a historic German canal heavily polluted with mercury. Mass fractions between 0.180 and 41 μg/kg (w(Hg)MMHg) for MMHg, and 0.056 and 126 mg/kg (w(Hg)total) for total mercury were found in sediment samples taken from the canal upstream and downstream of a former chemical plant. KW - Methylmercury KW - Legacy pollution KW - Finow Canal KW - Isotope dilution KW - Mercury speciation PY - 2021 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-529967 DO - https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-021-03497-z SN - 1618-2642 VL - 413 IS - 21 SP - 5279 EP - 5289 PB - Springer CY - Berlin AN - OPUS4-52996 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Simon, Fabian A1 - Gehrenkemper, Lennart A1 - von der Au, Marcus A1 - Wittwer, Phillip A1 - Roesch, Philipp A1 - Pfeifer, Jens A1 - Cossmer, Antje A1 - Meermann, Björn T1 - A fast and simple PFAS extraction method utilizing HR–CS–GFMAS for soil samples N2 - Here, we describe an optimized fast and simple extraction method for the determination of per- and polyfluorinated alkyl substances (PFASs) in soils utilizing high resolution-continuum source-graphite furnace molecular absorption spectrometry (HR–CS–GFMAS). To omit the bias of the solid phase extraction (SPE) step commonly used during the analysis of extractable organically bound fluorine (EOF) we optimized a fast and simple SPE-free extraction method. The developed extraction method consists of a liquid-solid extraction using acidified methanol without any additional SPE. Four extraction steps were representative to determine a high proportion of the EOF (>80% of eight extractions). Comparison of the optimized method with and without an additional SPE clean-up step revealed a drastic underestimation of EOF concentrations using SPE. Differences of up to 94% were observed which were not explainable by coextracted inorganic fluoride. Therefore, not only a more accurate but also a more economic as well as ecologic method (bypassing of unnecessary SPE) was developed. The procedural limit of quantification (LOQ) of the developed method was 10.30 μg/kg which was sufficient for quantifying EOF concentrations in all tested samples. For future PFAS monitoring and potential regulative decisions the herein presented optimized extraction method can offer a valuable contribution. KW - Per- and polyfluorinated alkly substances (PFASs) KW - High resolution-continuum source-graphite furnace molecular absorption spectrometry (HR-CS-GFMAS) KW - Soils KW - Solid phase extraction (SPE) KW - Extractable organically bound fluorine (EOF) KW - Solid-liquid extraction PY - 2022 DO - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2022.133922 VL - 295 SP - 1 EP - 9 PB - Elsevier Ltd. AN - OPUS4-54359 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - von der Au, Marcus A1 - Faßbender, Sebastian A1 - Chronakis, Michail A1 - Vogl, Jochen A1 - Meermann, Björn T1 - Size determination of nanoparticles by ICP-ToF-MS using isotope dilution in microdroplets N2 - Within this work, the combination of a microdroplet generator and an ICP-ToF-MS for nanoparticle analysis is presented. For the size determination of platinum nanoparticles an on-line isotope dilution analysis approach was developed. The 194Pt/195Pt isotopic ratio was used for the characterization of the particles, while the 182W/183W isotopic ratio was monitored simultaneously for mass bias correction. The on-line ID-MDG-sp-ICP-ToF-MS approach was deployed for the size determination of three platinum nanoparticle samples (50 nm, 63 nm, 70 nm); for validation, complementary size characterization techniques (sp-ICP-ToF-MS and TEM) were used. The robustness of this technique was evidenced, by using sodium chloride concentrations up to 100 mg L−1 as a matrix component. Our new on-line ID MDG-sp-ICP-ToF-MS approach is a promising tool for the fast and reliable determination of nanoparticles' size in severe matrix concentrations, e.g., environmental samples. KW - ICP-ToF-MS KW - Nanoparticles KW - Isotope Dilution PY - 2022 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-552727 DO - https://doi.org/10.1039/D2JA00072E SN - 0267-9477 VL - 37 IS - 6 SP - 1203 EP - 1207 PB - Royal Society of Chemistry AN - OPUS4-55272 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER -