title: A novel fast ion chromatographic method for the analysis of fluoride in Antarctic snow and ice.
abstract: Ice cores are widely used to reconstruct past changes of the climate system. For instance, the ice core record of numerous water-soluble and insoluble chemical species that are trapped in snow and ice offer the possibility to investigate past changes of various key compounds present in the atmosphere (i.e., aerosol, reactive gases). We developed a new method for the quantitative determination of fluoride in ice cores at sub-μg L(-1) levels by coupling a flow injection analysis technique with a fast ion chromatography separation based on the "heart cut" column switching technology. Sensitivity, linear range (up to 60 μg L(-1)), reproducibility, and detection limit (0.02 μg L(-1)) were evaluated for the new method. This method was successfully applied to the analysis of fluoride at trace levels in more than 450 recent snow samples collected during the 1998-1999 International Trans-Antarctica Scientific Expedition traverse in East Antarctica at sites located between 170 and 850 km from the coastline.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry "Ugo Schiff", University of Florence , Via della Lastruccia 3, 50019, Sesto Fiorentino, Florence, Italy.
authors.forename: Mirko
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Severi
authors.forename: Silvia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Becagli
authors.forename: Daniele
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Frosini
authors.forename: Miriam
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Marconi
authors.forename: Rita
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Traversi
authors.forename: Roberto
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Udisti
mesh_terms: D000864:Antarctic Regions; D001272:Atmosphere / Q000737:chemistry; D002845:Chromatography / Q000379:methods*; D002980:Climate; D005459:Fluorides / Q000032:analysis*; D007053:Ice / Q000032:analysis*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012914:Snow; D014867:Water / Q000737:chemistry
chemical_list: D007053:Ice; D014867:Water; D005459:Fluorides