FAAS Determination of 3 Heavy Metals in Sarcodia Ceylonensis

3 Heavy metals, i.e., Cu, Pb and Cd, in Sarcodia ceylonensis were determined by FAAS. Sample of Sarcodia ceylonensis was cut into pieces and dried in an oven to constant weight. For determination of Cu, 1.000 0 g of the dried sample was taken and digested with 10 mL portions of mixed acid of HNO3-HClO4 (9+1) until complete dissolution was attained. The solution was made up to 10 mL in a volumetric flask and used for FAAS analysis. In 5 determinations for the 3 elements in a same sample, values of RSD (n=5) found were 2.0%, 3.2% and 2.5% for Cu, Pb and Cd respectively. Values of recovery found by standard addition method were 95.4% (for Cu), 95.3% (for Pb) and 103.0% (for Cd). It was found that besides the content of copper, the contents of Pb and Cd were 34.3 times and 13.9 times higher than the specified tolerable levels given in the GB standards.