Trace element concentrations in human hair measured by proton induced X ray emission

Abstract

Proton induced X ray spectroscopy has been used to measure trace element concentration ratios for 10 elements relative to Zn on a group of the population in the harbor city of Rijeka, Yugoslavia. Hair samples of different lengths were obtained by cutting a lock of hair from each of 101 school children from three schools at different locations in the harbor city. It is shown that X ray emission spectroscopy is a very suitable technique for studying elemental concentrations in hair samples. Since only the relative concentrations to Zn have to be measured, the target preparation procedure is very simple because no internal standard is necessary. This protects the sample from any contamination that can be introduced during the target preparation. The results in this paper indicate the average concentration values for 9 elements relative to Zn for the area around the harbor city of Rijeka. Five elements show constant concentrations along the hair, and their concentration ratios most probably represent the biologic level of these elements in the hair of the inhabitants in this area. The tendency of the other 4 elements to increase along the hair indicates the presence of these elements as pollutants in the environment. The measurements of concentrations along the hair can undoubtedly be used as a method of identifying pollutants in an area, as well as for extracting information on the exposure of subjects in such an environment.