Determination of phosphorus in different types of waste using the ICP-MS technique

The research aimed to provide an optimal method for the determination of phosphorus concentration in different types of solid waste using inductive coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) technique. The analyzed waste matrices were: a) vegetable waste (P1), b) ash from the incineration of medical waste (P2), c) sewage sludge (P3) and d) sludge from the meat processing industry (P4). The experimental tests were performed to evaluate the detection limit, quantification limit, recovery, and expanded uncertainty for different types of waste using the ICP-MS method. The results indicate 0.1 mg/kg quantification limit, 2.3% intermediate precision, 13.1% expanded uncertainty, and 95.2% recovery for P4 waste sample. The results of the total phosphorus obtained by the ICP-MS method were compared to those from UV-VIS spectrometric method. The study concluded that the ICP-MS method leads to better results in a shorter time and with lower costs.