Acid volatile sulfides and simultaneously extracted metals: A new miniaturized 'purge and trap' system for laboratory...

In natural environments, Acid Volatile Sulfides (AVS) contained in anoxic waters or sediments, are composed of dissolved sulfides and neo-formed sulfides colloids or particles. Under acidic addition, AVS emit hydrogen sulfide gas and release the so-called simultaneously extracted metals (SEM). The measurement of AVS coupled with that of the SEM enables to evaluate the metal trapping capacity of sulfides in the environment. Because AVS are extremely reactive to oxidation, the most accurate methodology to quantify AVS and SEM requires to be able to process the samples extraction on-site, directly after sampling and avoiding oxygen exposure. However, most of available systems are based on glassware 'purge and trap' techniques developed for the laboratory and are not often adapted to field studies. In these systems, AVS extraction time can range from 30 min to 3 h with relative standard deviation from 7 to 44%. In this study, we developed a new 'purge and trap' system designed for both laboratory use and field AVS/SEM extractions. The system is optimized with a shortened extraction time, miniaturized, unbreakable, easy and reproducible to develop parallel extraction benches. Analytical yields, precision and stability have been improved, allowing to reduce the extraction time to 1 h with an absolute quantification limit of 0.12 μmol S(-II) with a relative standard deviation between 7 and 11% and under a complete extraction efficiency.