Perkin Elmer has revealed how its high-performance Optima ICP-OES systems are helping the textile industry regulate the use of prohibited allergenic and toxic substances in garments.
Swedish analytical company, Swerea IVF, is using the versatile Optima ICP-OES 2100 to analyse exposure to residual metals from leading brands of jeans.
Perkin Elmer claimed the speed and accuracy of the Optima system is proving invaluable in the detection of low levels of heavy metals, including mercury and lead, which can have poor sample stability.
The analysis is performed as part of the Oeko-Tex certification for the safety of textiles.
Swerea IVF employs an analytical model to mimic how metals are partly dissolved and transferred to the skin while wearing textile garments, such as jeans.
Once the metals have been extracted from the material using an artificial sweat solution, the samples are analysed immediately using the Optima ICP-OES to reduce the risk of decomposition.
The multi-component spectral fitting (MSF) algorithm in the ICP software, combined with good wavelength stability, ensures optimum detection results are achieved.
