Trace elemental composition of curry by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES)

Abstract

A methodology based on inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) after microwave-assisted acid digestion was developed to determine the content of traces elements in curry samples from the Spanish market. The methodology was validated in terms of accuracy by the analysis of citrus and tomato leaf reference materials achieving comparable results with the certified values. The trace metal content of curry samples was compared with data available from previously published reports concerning Indian samples, especially in terms of heavy metal composition, in order to guarantee the quality of the commercially available spices in the European countries. Values found for the analysis of arsenic, lead and cadmium were significantly lower than the maximum limit allowed by European Union statutory limits for heavy metals and lower than those obtained for Indian curry leaves reported by Indian research teams by using neutron activation and γ-ray analysis.

Keywords:

• curry
• inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES)
• trace elements
• heavy metals

Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge the financial support of the Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia (Project No. AGL-2007-64567); and A. Gonzálvez thanks the F.P.U. grant (No. AP2007-04566) provided by the Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación to carry out this study.