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Background element content in the lichen Pseudevernia furfuracea: a comparative analysis of digestion methods

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Abstract

In bioaccumulation studies, the interpretation of pollutant contents in the target biomonitor has to be performed by assessing a deviation from an unaltered reference condition. A common strategy consists in the comparison with background element content (BEC) values, often built up by uncritically merging methodologically heterogeneous data. In this respect, the acid digestion of samples was identified as a major step affecting BEC data. Here, the analytical outcomes of two acid mixtures were compared on a set of matched paired samples of the lichen Pseudevernia furfuracea, a widely used biomonitor for which BEC values based on partial digestion were previously provided. The standard reference material BCR 482 (P. furfuracea) was used to validate analytical procedures consisting of either a HF total mineralization or an aqua regia partial one, both associated to ICP-MS multi-element analysis. In particular, the performance of the procedures was evaluated by comparing analytical results of field samples with the accuracy obtained on BCR aliquots (measured-to-expected percentage ratio). The total digestion showed a better performance for Al, As, Ba, Ca, Cd, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Se, Sn, and Zn, whereas the opposite was found for Cr, Co, P, and S. Moreover, new BEC values were provided for P. furfuracea using a consolidated statistical approach, after a total sample digestion with hydrofluoric acid. The multivariate investigation of the background variability of 43 elements in 57 remote Italian sites led to the identification of geographically homogeneous areas for which BEC values are provided for use as reference in biomonitoring applications.

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Acknowledgements

The authors are grateful to Drs. M. Bidussi, D. Cataldo, A. Carasci, T. Craighero, F. Cristofolini, S. Martellos, F. Panepinto, G. Potenza, and A. V. Romano for help in lichen sampling.

Funding

This work was supported by the University of Trieste (grant number: FRA2015, resp. M. T.).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Life Sciences, University of Trieste, Via L. Giorgieri 10, 34127, Trieste, Italy

    Elva Cecconi, Fabio Candotto Carniel & Mauro Tretiach

  2. Department of Agri-Food, Environmental and Animal Sciences (Di4A), University of Udine, Udine, Italy

    Guido Incerti

  3. Department of Biology, University of Naples Federico II, Napoli, Italy

    Fiore Capozzi, Simonetta Giordano & Valeria Spagnuolo

  4. Department of Agricultural Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, Napoli, Italy

    Paola Adamo

  5. Department of Physical, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Siena, Siena, Italy

    Roberto Bargagli

  6. Department of Biology, University of Florence, Florence, Italy

    Renato Benesperi

  7. Department of Life Sciences and System Biology, University of Torino, Torino, Italy

    Sergio Enrico Favero-Longo

  8. Natural History Museum and Botanical Garden, University of Calabria, Arcavacata di Rende, Cosenza, Italy

    Domenico Puntillo

  9. Department of Biosciences and Territory (DiBT), University of Molise, Pesche, Isernia, Italy

    Sonia Ravera

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  1. Elva Cecconi
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Correspondence to Mauro Tretiach.

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Cecconi, E., Incerti, G., Capozzi, F. et al. Background element content in the lichen Pseudevernia furfuracea: a comparative analysis of digestion methods. Environ Monit Assess 191, 260 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-019-7405-4

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