Themed collection Themed issue dedicated to Barry Sharp

Les Ebdon introduces the Barry Sharp themed issue with a few highlights of Barry’s career.

Arsenic is ubiquitous in nature appearing in various chemical forms.

Biofuel quality control involves the determination of metal and metalloid content.

A deconvolution algorithm complemented by a low dispersion cell unlocks lateral resolutions of 0.3 ± 0.1 μm at 200–300 Hz in LA-ICP-MS.

New multielement flexible matrix-matched calibration was applied to quantify elemental maps in uroliths by LA-ICP-MS.

This work presents a method that enables the direct elemental and isotopic analysis of dried blood spots using LA-ICPMS.

The potential of elemental and molecular mass spectrometry is evaluated for the study of new ruthenium containing metallodrugs.

Inter-parametric evaluation of the production of excited atomic and ionic states in the LS-APGD microplasma is presented.

MD gradient elution LC-ICP-MS analysis with 100% methanol was achieved. Species-independent sensitivity was maintained for Pt but lost for Se.

A simple, rapid and sensitive method of C₁₈-SBSE-HPLC-ICP-MS for the speciation of butyltins in environmental waters and sediments.

Use of FlFFF-ICP-MS for observation of protein–AgNPs binding and evaluation of the binding stoichiometry.

The integrated use of elemental and molecular ion sources for enhanced selenium speciation data in rat liver and kidneys, along with its potential for Se-supplement studies are highlighted.

Combining high-efficiency cones with the addition of nitrogen in laser ablation MC-ICP-MS not only enhances the sensitivity and mass bias stability, but also suppresses the non-linear mass fractionation for Nd isotope analyses.

Comparison of analytical precision for radiogenic isotope systems expressed as a percentage of the spread of isotope compositions found in mantle-derived rocks.

A new internal standardisation strategy based on iridium intercalation is established for quantitative immunoassay imaging by laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry.

UV combined with microwave-assisted digestion of seaweed for the determination of As, Cd and Pb by ICP-MS.

Interlaboratory performance is reported for nine participants analyzing six well-characterized urine reference materials supplemented with ²³⁴U, ²³⁵U, ²³⁶U, and ²³⁸U.

Miniaturized atmospheric pressure glow discharge with a flowing liquid cathode was used for the elemental analysis (Ca, Cu, Fe, K, Li, Mg, Mn, Na, Rb and Zn) of honeys by OES. A simplified sample preparation procedure was proposed and samples of honeys were only dissolved in water and acidified with HCl.

Infrared-heating the spray chamber and bottom of the torch significantly improves sensitivity and detection limit for 38 elements, as well as robustness, resulting in a Mg II 280.270 nm/Mg I 285.213 nm line intensity ratio of 13.

International standards for the recognition of the competence of testing laboratories require that measurement results should be traceable to a conventionally agreed reference.

THF-assisted alkaline extraction method was developed to overcome low recovery of hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI)) in polymers due to the reduction to Cr(III) by Sb(III).

Laser-ablation (LA) sample introduction is combined with a new simultaneous multi-element determining, velocity-based ICPMS approach called distance-of-flight mass spectrometry (DOFMS).

The analytical potential of ArF* excimer Laser Ablation Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) is investigated for fast qualitative depth profile analysis of multi-layer CdTe photovoltaic (PV) devices.

A new approach based on the use of GC-ICP-MS and ⁸¹Br-labelled PBDEs for species-specific isotope dilution has been developed for the reliable quantification of PBDEs according to the EU WFD.

A new approach to normalize carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios measured by EA-CF-IRMS without using a reference gas for correction of instrumental drifts and instrumental isotope fractionation.