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Journal of Analytical Methods in Chemistry logoLink to Journal of Analytical Methods in Chemistry
. 2015 Jul 5;2015:372459. doi: 10.1155/2015/372459

Recent Developments in the Speciation and Determination of Mercury Using Various Analytical Techniques

Lakshmi Narayana Suvarapu 1,*, Sung-Ok Baek 1
PMCID: PMC4506829  PMID: 26236539

Abstract

This paper reviews the speciation and determination of mercury by various analytical techniques such as atomic absorption spectrometry, voltammetry, inductively coupled plasma techniques, spectrophotometry, spectrofluorometry, high performance liquid chromatography, and gas chromatography. Approximately 126 research papers on the speciation and determination of mercury by various analytical techniques published in international journals since 2013 are reviewed.

1. Introduction

Mercury, which is also known as quick silver, is only the metal (Figure 1) in the modern periodic table that exists in liquid form at room temperature. The sources of mercury in the environment include the natural processes, such as breakdown of minerals in rocks and volcanic activities. The anthropogenic sources are not limited to mining and the burning of fossil fuels. Regarding the toxicity of mercury and its different species, methylmercury poisoning affects the nervous system of humans and damages the brain and kidneys [1]. Most of the mercury emitted into the environment is converted to methylmercury, which spreads to the food chain due to the bioaccumulation nature of methylmercury [2]. Owing to the toxicity nature and bioaccumulation nature of mercury, most studies in this area have focused on the determination of mercury and its species in various environmental and biological samples.

Figure 1.

Figure 1

Elemental mercury.

Marumoto and Imai [3] reported the determination of dissolved gaseous mercury in the seawater of Minamata Bay of Japan. This study also estimated the exchange of mercury across the air-sea interface. Panichev and Panicheva [4] reported the determination of the total mercury content in fish and sea products by thermal decomposition atomic absorption spectrometry. Fernández-Martínez et al. [5] evaluated different digestion systems for the determination of mercury with CV-AFS (cold-vapor atomic fluorescence spectrometer) in seaweeds. Pinedo-Hernández et al. [6] examined the speciation and bioavailability of mercury in sediments that had been impacted by gold mining in Colombia.

This paper presented the recent developments in this topic after a previous review published in 2013 [2]. The present study reviews the recent developments in the speciation and determination studies of mercury reported and published since 2013. For this purpose, approximately 136 research papers published were reviewed. All the analytical parameters such as limit of detection, linearity range, and interference study reported by the reviewed papers are presented in Tables 1–4 [7133]. This extensive collection of literature and the analytical parameters of the reviewed papers established the recent developments in the determination and speciation studies of mercury using a range of analytical techniques.

2. Discussion

The toxicity and bioaccumulation nature of mercury has prompted extensive studies to determine the concentrations of mercury species in different environmental and biological samples. This paper reviewed a large number of studies on the determination and speciation of toxic metals including mercury. The reviews regarding the determination of mercury published since 2013 are discussed hereunder.

Suvarapu et al. [2] reviewed research papers published between 2010 and 2011 regarding the speciation and determination of mercury using a variety of analytical techniques. They concluded that most researchers prefer cold-vapor atomic absorption spectrometry (CV-AAS) and atomic absorption spectrofluorometry (CV-AFS) for the speciation and determination studies of mercury in various environmental samples. Suvarapu et al. [134] also reviewed research papers published in 2012 regarding the determination of mercury in various environmental samples. El-Shahawi and Al-Saidi [135] reviewed the dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction (DLLME) method for the speciation and determination of metal ions including mercury. This review concluded that the method of DLLME has the advantages of simplicity, speed, and low cost for the determination of metal ions using various analytical techniques. Ferreira et al. [136] reviewed the use of reflux systems for the sample preparation in the determination of elements, such as arsenic, antimony, cadmium, lead, and mercury. This study concluded that the use of the reflux systems is very rare in the determination of elements, such as Hg. Gao et al. [137] reviewed the application of chemical vapor generation method for the determination of metal ions, such as mercury and cadmium with ICP-MS. Sańchez et al. [138] reviewed the determination of trace elements including mercury present in petroleum products using ICP techniques. This study concluded that the electrothermal vaporization and laser ablation methods were promising for the analysis of petroleum for trace elements. Martín-Yerga et al. [139] reviewed the determination of mercury using electrochemical methods. This study discussed the advantages and disadvantages of the use of different electrodes in the determination of mercury. Chang et al. [140] reviewed the detection of heavy metals, such as cadmium, lead, and mercury in water samples using graphene based sensors. This study concluded that it is a very challenging task to detect heavy metals in water in real time due to the interference of large chemical and biological species in water. Yu and Wang [141] reviewed the determination of metal ions including mercury by atomic spectrometry by applying flow-based sample pretreatment methods. They concluded that the ICP-AES, AAS, AFS, and ICP-MS are the major detection techniques for trace metal analysis. Yin et al. [142] reviewed the speciation analysis of mercury, arsenic, and selenium using a range of analytical techniques. Gao and Huang [143] reviewed the determination of mercury(II) ions by voltammetry and concluded that stripping voltammetry is still an active field of research regarding the determination of mercury. Duarte et al. [144] reviewed disposable sensors and electrochemical sensors for the environmental monitoring of Pb, Cd, and Hg. They recommended the recycling of materials used in sensors for future studies. Recently, Ferreira et al. [145] reviewed the analytical strategies of sample preparation for the determination of mercury in food matrices.

In recent days, few research papers were published about the determination and analysis of mercury species in various environmental and biological samples and some of them are discussed hereunder. Lima et al. [146] reported an efficient method for the determination of mercury in inorganic fertilizers by using CV-AAS combined with microwave-induced plasma spectrometry. Pelcová et al. [147] reported the simultaneous determination of mercury species by LC-AFS with a low detection limit of 13–38 ng L−1. Chen et al. [148] reported a colorimetric method for the determination of mercury ions based on gold nanoparticles and thiocyanuric acid. Fernández et al. [149] reported gold nanostructured screen-printed carbon electrodes for the determination of mercury using dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction. Fernández-Martínez et al. [5] evaluated the different digestion systems for determination of mercury in seaweeds using CV-AFS. Silva et al. [150] determined the trace amounts of mercury in alcohol vinegar samples collected from Salvador, Bahia of Brazil. Jarujamrus et al. [151] reported a colorimetric method using unmodified silver nanoparticles for the determination of mercury in water samples. A highly selective method for the determination of mercury using a glassy carbon electrode modified with nano-TiO2 and multiwalled carbon nanotubes in river and industrial wastewater was reported by Mao et al. [152].

As mentioned in our previous review [2], spectrometric techniques are used widely by many researchers for the determination of mercury over the world. Regarding the determination of mercury with various analytical instruments in the papers reviewed, more than 55% of the researchers used spectrometric instruments, such as atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS), inductively coupled plasma techniques (ICP-OES, AES, and MS), and atomic fluorescence spectrometer (AFS) (Table 1). ICP-MS technique has an advantage of low detection limits and wide range of linearity in the determination of mercury [153]. Around 20% of the researchers chose the spectrophotometer and spectrofluorometer (Table 2) for the determination and speciation of mercury. Approximately 10% of researchers in the papers reviewed used electrochemical instruments for the determination and speciation studies of mercury (Table 3). Only a few authors chose the HPLC, GC, and other techniques (Table 4) but they coupled these instruments with AAS or other instruments. Regarding the analysis of the environmental biological samples for mercury and its species, most researchers analyzed various water samples (drinking, seawater, wastewater, river, and lake waters) followed by food samples (mostly fish), human hair, and ambient air. Only a few authors determined the concentration of mercury in ambient air and atmospheric particulate matter [26, 48, 52, 66, 119, 126]. Various measurement techniques that can be available for the determination of mercury species in ambient air were reviewed by Pandey et al. [154]. This study also concluded that most of the researchers preferred CV-AAS and CV-AFS technique for the measurement of different mercury species in ambient air. In comparison of methods, acid digestion and thermal method, for the analysis of mercury in ambient air acid digestion, is better than thermal method. By the thermal methods the values can be obtained 30% lower than the acid digestion method [155].

Table 1.

Analytical parameters of reviewed research papers about the speciation and determination of mercury by spectrometric instruments (AAS, ICP-OES, AES, MS, and AFS).

S. number Analyte Analytical instrument used for the detection Method Limit of detection (LOD)# Linearity range Analyzed samples Interference study Supporting media Reference
1 Total Hg CV-AAS and ICP-AES Microwave acid digestion 4.83 × 10−10 M Fish samples Cadmium and lead also analyzed along with mercury [7]

2 Hg(II) CV-AAS Preconcentration 1.79 × 10−10 M Water and human hair Recovery of Hg2+ is in the range of 95.6–104.9% in presence of Cu2+, Co2+, Zn2+, Ni2+, Cd2+, Mn2+, Ba2+, Pb2+, Fe3+, Cr3+, Al3+, Ag+, K+, Na+, NH4 +, Mg2+, and Ca2+ ions, from 750 to 2500-fold Dithizone [8]

3 Total Hg CV-AAS Ultrasound extraction 6.98 × 10−11 M Alcohol vinegar [9]

4 Total Hg CV-AAS SPE1 4.98 × 10−11 M Rice, canned fish, and tea leaves The tolerance limit for Na+, K+, Mg2+, and Ca2+ is 4000-fold, for Ba2+ and Zn2+ is 40-fold, for Fe3+, Cr3+, Co2+, and Ni2+ is 10-fold, and for Al3+ is 200-fold compared to Hg2+ Fe3O4 nanoparticles [10]

5 Hg(II) CV-AAS SPE 9.97 × 10−12 M Up to 500 μg L−1 Water samples As, Al, Fe, Mo, and Sb are depressed the Hg signal Carbon nanotubes [11]

6 Total Hg CV-AAS Acid digestion 3.6 × 10−9 M Marine fish [12]

7 Total Hg CV-AAS Wet digestion 3.0 × 10−9 M Green tiger shrimp Arsenic also determined along with mercury [13]

8 Total Hg CV-AAS Alkaline fusion digestion 0.06 ng g−1 0.006–4000 ng g−1 Phosphate rock [14]

9 THg AAS Acid digestion 4.98 × 10−12 M Fish muscle tissues Cadmium and lead also detected along with mercury [15]

10 Hg(II) CV-AAS SPE 1.19 × 10−11 M 0.01–2.30 μg L−1 Water samples Fe3+, Cu2+, Zn2+, Cd2+, Co2+, and Mn2+ are not interfered up to 5 mg L−1 and NH4 + and Tl3+ are not interfered up to 1 mg L−1 Polymer supported ionic liquid [16]

11 Hg(II) CV-AAS SPE 9.97 × 10−11 M 0.07–2.00 μg L−1 Water samples Tolerable amount of major metals is limited up to 50 μg L−1 Polytetrafluoroethylene [17]

12 Total Hg CV-AAS Digestion 3.98 × 10−10 M 2.5–10.0 μg L−1 Biological samples Cold finger [18]

13 Total Hg CV-AAS Combustion 2.99 × 10−13 M Water and fish Arsenic and selenium also determined along with mercury [19]

14 Total Hg AAS Amalgamation 0.2 ng/g for hair and 0.02 ng/g for blood Hair and blood samples Arsenic and selenium also determined along with mercury [20]

15 Total Hg CV-AAS (total Hg) and GC-ICPMS (MeHg) Cold-vapor reduction with NaBH4 5.98 × 10−11 M (total Hg) and 2.3 × 10−9 M (MeHg) Blood of birds Selenium also determined along with mercury and methylmercury [21]

16 Total Hg and MeHg CV-AAS (total Hg) and CV-AFS (MeHg) Digestion 0.03–0.1 ng/g Fish, vegetables, and mushrooms Selenium and cadmium also determined with mercury species [22]

17 Hg speciation CV-AAS (total Hg) and CV-AFS (MeHg) Acid digestion Water samples [23]

18 Hg speciation CV-AAS LLME2 1.49 × 10−10 M (Hg2+) and
1.8 × 10−9 M (MeHg)
0.5–100 ng mL−1 Water samples and CRMs The recovery of Hg2+ in presence of foreign ions is 95–105 and for MeHg is 96–106% [24]

19 Total Hg GF-AAS Acid mineralization 6.97 × 10−11 M Fish muscle samples Copper nitrate [25]

20 GEM AAS Ambient air [26]

21 Total Hg CV-AAS Acid digestion 0.0006 μg g−1 Freshwater fish samples Stannous chloride [27]

22 Total Hg AAS Combustion 0.01 ng Soil samples Interference of various heavy metals was overcome by using sample pretreatment [28]

23 Hg speciation AAS (THg) and ICP-MS-HPLC (MeHg) Hydride generation 5.33 × 10−14 M 20 μg L−1 Fish samples Cd, Pb, As, and Sn also measured along with Hg [29]

24 THg HG-AAS Hydride generation 98.4% (accuracy) Irrigation water wells Along with mercury Pb, Cd, and Al Cr also measured [30]

25 THg CV-AAS and AAS Thermal decomposition and amalgamation 1.34 × 10−9 M (TD-amalgamation AAS) and 3.14 × 10−9 M (CV-AAS), Soil samples [31]

26 Total Hg speciation HV-AAS and
HPLC-CV-AFS
Extraction Aqueous solutions and fish tissue Multiwalled carbon nanotubes [32]

27 Total Hg CV-AAS (DMA) Microwave oven digestion Canned fish Selenium and tin also measured along with mercury [33]

28 THg AMA (AAS) AAS principles and without digestion process Fish red muscle and
white muscle
[34]

29 THg AES LIBS and SIBS 2 × 10−3 M (LIBS) and 9.97 × 10−5 M (SIBS) Soil samples At 534.074 nm has less spectral interference [35]

30 Hg speciation CV-AFS Extraction 1.0 (total Hg) and 0.01 MeHg ng g−1 Sea water and sediments [36]

31 Hg speciation CV-AFS Extraction 0.01 × 10−12 M (Hg0) and 0.002 × 10−12 M (DM Hg) Sea waters [37]

32 Total Hg CV-AFS Microwave assisted digestion 3.98 × 10−13 M Nuts Interference of fat in nuts is removed by treatment with chloroform and methanol [38]

33 Hg(II) AFS Fluorescence optical sensor 9.57 × 10−12 M 2.27 × 10−11–1.13 × 10−3 M Human hair, urine, and
well water samples
Most of the alkali, alkaline, and transition metal ions did not interfere in the determination of Hg2+ N-(2-Hydroxy phenyl)-N-(2-mercapto phenyl)-o-phthalylidene [39]

34 GEM CV-AFS Gold amalgamation 0.0002 ng Total suspended particulates QFF (quartz fiber filters) [40]

35 MeHg AAS and CV-AFS Acid digestion 0.005 μg/g Water, soil, sediments, and foodstuffs [41]

36 Total Hg CV-AFS Microwave assisted digestion 0.5 ng g−1 Sediments Sequential injection system [42]

37 Total Hg CV-AFS Acid digestion 0.48 ng g−1 Rice Interference of other metal ions is eliminated by acid wash and kept storage of samples for 24 h Multisyringe flow injection analysis [43]

38 Hg speciation HPLC-AFS UV-induced atomization 1.9 × 10−9 (Hg2+), 1.9 × 10−9 (MeHg), and 2.0 × 10−9 (EtHg) M CRMs [44]

39 Hg(II) UV-AFS SPE 1.49 × 10−13–3.98 × 10−13 M 1–5000 ng L−1 Natural waters 10 mg L−1 of Fe2+, Fe3+, Cu2+, Pb2+, and As3+ and 10 g L−1 of Na+, K+, and Ca2+ did not interfere in the determination of 100 ng L−1 of Hg2+ Sodium diethyldithiocarbamate [45]

40 Hg(II) AFS Micro-SPE 5.98 × 10−11 M Up to 5 μg L−1 Water samples Mesofluidic platform [46]

41 Hg speciation EX-AFS 0.5 ng g−1 (total Hg) Waste calcines [47]

42 Hg speciation CV-AFS Extraction ~0.5 pg Atmospheric air PTFE filter papers [48]

43 MeHg GC-AFS SPE 12 ng g−1 Up to 1.5 ng mL−1 Biological samples [49]

44 Hg speciation HPLC-AFS Liquid-liquid microextraction 1.54 × 10−10 (Hg2+), 7.42 × 10−11 (MeHg), 1.045 × 10−10 (EtHg), and 3.31 × 10−10 M (PhHg) 0.0–20 μg L−1 Environmental waters No interference from other metal ions 1-Octyl-3-meth-l imidazolium hexafluorophosphate [50]

45 MeHg CV-AFS Extraction 0.515 ng g−1 Petroleum TMAH3, KOH/CH3OH, HCl, and acidic CuSO4/KBr [51]

46 GEM CV-AFS Ambient air [52]

47 Hg(II) AFS Fluorescence 0.07 × 10−6 M 0.1–4.5 μM Aqueous solutions Longer excitation and emission wavelength could shield the interference Fe3O4 magnetic nanoparticles [53]

48 Hg speciation CV-AFS Thermal decomposition Fish liver Method validity is tested with CRM [54]

49 THg AFS <4.98 × 10−12 M Snow K2Cr2O7/SnCl2 [55]

50 Atmospheric Hg CV-AFS Extraction Particulate matter [56]

51 THg CV-AFS Flow injection mercury system Herbal products Protease papain [57]

52 Hg speciation LC-UV-CV-AFS Microwave digestion 4.98 × 10−12 (total Hg), 1.39 × 10−12 (MeHg), and 1.99 × 10−12 (Hg2+) M Sea food Simultaneously determined both Hg(II) and MeHg [58]

53 MeHg and total Hg CV-AAS Digestion 0.088 (MeHg) and 0.005 (total Hg) μg g−1 Hair and milk of mothers [59]

54 Hg(II) ICP-MS Microfluidic 3.49 × 10−10 M 0.2–4.0 μg L−1 Aqueous samples The recovery of Hg2+ in the presence of 100 μg L−1 of Ca2+, Cd2+, Co2+, Cr3+, Cu2+, K+, Mg2+, Na+, Ni2+, Pb2+, and Zn2+ is in the range of 97.5–101.7% Gold nanoparticles [60]

55 Total Hg ICP-MS Acid digestion 0.053–0.01 μg g−1 Pharmaceutical ingredients Low residual carbon content in digests is desirable to minimize some interference [61]

56 Hg(II) ICP-MS Adsorption Wastewaters Multiwalled carbon nanotubes [62]

57 Hg(II) ICP-OES Extraction 1.49 × 10−11 M Fish samples Selective in presence of Na+, K+, Cs+, Ca2+, Mg2+, Zn2+, Fe2+, Cu2+, Co2+, Ni2+, Mn2+, Cd2+, and Pb2+ into 1 mg L−1 solutions of Hg(II) in pH 8 Ion imprinted polymer [63]

58 Total Hg CV-ICP-MS Microwave digestion 3 ng g−1 Plants and soil [64]

59 Total Hg ICP-MS Microwave assisted digestion Rice [65]

60 GEM CV-ICP-MS Thermal analysis 20 × 10−15 g Atmospheric particulates [66]

61 Hg(II) and MeHg HPLC-ICPMS HF-LPME4 5.48 × 10−10  (Hg2+) and 1 × 10−9  (MeHg) M Up to 50 μg L−1 Tap, river, and estuarine waters Simultaneously selenium also determined along with mercury [67]

62 Hg speciation ICP-MS Ion exchange chromatography 9.47 × 10−11  (Hg2+), 1.25 × 10−10  (MeHg), 1.35 × 10−10  (EtHg), and 7.92 × 10−10  (PhHg) M 0.1–100 μg L−1 (all Hg species) Sea water and marine fish L-Cysteine or thiourea [68]

63 Hg speciation GC-ICP-MS Preconcentration 27 (Hg2+) and 12 ng g−1 (MeHg) Human hair [69]

64 Total Hg MC-ICPMS Isotope ratio analysis 0.1–0.2 disintegrations per minute Sediment core Mercury and mercury isotope compositions are determined [70]

65 Hg(II) and MeHg CVG-ICP-MS Extraction 1.7 (Hg(II)) and 2.3 ng g−1 (MeHg) Fish samples [71]

66 MeHg, Hg(II), and
EtHg
HPLC-CV-ICPMS Extraction and separation 5.98 × 10−11 (Hg(II)), 2.17 × 10−11 (EtHg), and 1.8 × 10−8 (MeHg) M Plasma/serum samples [72]

67 Total Hg ICP-MS Microwave assisted digestion Freshwater fish samples [73]

68 Total Hg ICP-MS Isotope dilution and UV-photochemical vapor generation 0.5 pg g−1 Biological tissues Polyatomic interference is not detectable Formic acid [74]

69 Total Hg ICP-MS Calcination-isotope dilution 2 × 10−15 M Diploria specimens No isobaric interference was found [75]

70 Hg speciation ICP-MS Anion exchange chromatographic separation 3.98 × 10−11 (Hg2+), 1.11 × 10−10 (MeHg), 1.26 × 10−10 (EtHg), and 1.22 × 10−10 (PhHg) M Fish samples 3-Mercapto-1-propanesulfonate [76]

71 Total Hg ICP-MS Ultrasonic slurry sampling electrothermal vaporization 0.2 ng g−1 Herbal samples As, Cd, and Pb also determined along with Hg 8-Hydroxyquinoline [77]

72 Total Hg ICP-MS Electrothermal vaporization 5.98 × 10−11 M Water associated with crude oil production By preconcentration of analyte interference is avoided [78]

73 THg ICP-MS Isotope dilution equation 4.98 × 10−11 M for THg 0.0005–1.321 mg/kg for MeHg Arctic cod [79]

#For the conversion of limit of detection values into moles per liter (M) the atomic weight of Hg is taken as 200.59 g, MeHg as 215.59 g, EtHg as 229.59 g, and PhHg as 277.59 g.

1Solid-phase extraction; 2LLME: liquid-liquid microextraction; 3TMAH: tetramethylammonium hydroxide; 4HF-LPME: hallow fiber liquid phase microextraction.

Analytical instruments: CV-AAS: cloud vapor atomic absorption spectrometer; HG-AAS: hydride generation AAS; GF-AAS: graphite furnace AAS; ICP-OES: inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometer; ICP-MS: ICP-mass spectrometer; ICP-AES: ICP-atomic emission spectrometer; HPLC: high performance liquid chromatography; AFS: atomic fluorescence spectrometer; AMA: automatic mercury analyzer; DMA: direct mercury analyzer.

Table 2.

Analytical parameters of reviewed research papers about the speciation and determination of mercury by spectrophotometer and spectrofluorometer.

S. number Analyte Analytical instrument used for the detection Method Limit of detection (LOD)# Linearity range Analyzed samples Interference study Supporting media Reference
1 Hg(II) Fluorescence spectrophotometer Fluorescence 4.0 × 10−9 M 6.0–450 nM Water samples 10-fold of Pb2+, Cu2+, and Ag+ shows <7% influence on the determination of Hg2+ compared to reported ones CdTe quantum dots [80]

2 Hg(II) Spectrophotometer Colorimetric 23 × 10−9 M 0.00–0.31 μM River water Selective in presence of Ag+, Cd2+, Cu2+, Co2+, Ni2+, and Pb2+ Carbon nanodots [81]

3 Hg(II) Spectrophotometer Colorimetric 2.6 × 10−9 M 0.001–1 μM Water samples Selective in presence of 20 μM of Al3+, Ca2+, Co2+, Cu2+, Cd2+, Fe3+, Mn2+, Ni2+, Pb2+, and Zn2+ Gold nanoparticles [82]

4 Hg(II) Spectrophotometer Colorimetric 0.83–8.6 μg mL−1 Water samples The tolerance limit of Cu2+, V5+, Ag+, Pd2+, Pt4+, Au3+, Fe2+, Ni2+, Cd2+, Pb2+, and Cr6+ is in the range of 0.11–041 μg mL−1in the determination of 1.91 μg mL−1 of Hg2+ 5-Methylthiophene-2-carboxaldehyde ethylenediamine [83]

5 Hg(II) Spectrofluorometer Fluorescence 1.73 × 10−9 M 2.0 nM–60 μM Interference of major cations studied ONPCRs1 [84]

6 Hg(II) Spectrophotometer Colorimetric 50 × 10−9 M2 0–1000 nM Water samplers Selective in presence of Ni2+, Co2+, Ca2+, Cu2+, Na+, K+, As3+, Mg2+, Cd2+, and Fe2+ Silver nanoparticles [85]

7 Hg(II) UV-Vis spectrophotometer Colorimetric 1.35 × 10−6 M Drinking water Cd2+, Pb2+, Fe3+, and Ba2+ do not interfere in the determination of Hg2+ but Mg2+, Ca2+, and Mn2+ interfere slightly Gold nanoparticles [86]

8 Hg(II) Spectrofluorometer and UV-spectrometer Colorimetric and fluorescent sensor 2.7 × 10−8 M 0–1.0 × 10−6 M Water samples and living cells The fluorescent signal for Hg(II) is not influenced by the major metal ions including Fe(III), Cu(II), and Al(III) 2,4-Dichloroquinazoline [87]

9 Hg(II) Spectrophotometer Colorimetric 5.3 × 10−13 M 1.0 × 10−12–8.6 × 10−4 M Water samples and SRM Selective in presence of Mn2+, Fe2+, Fe3+, Ni2+, Co2+, Cd2+, and Pb2+ Chromoionophore V [88]

10 Hg(II) Spectrofluorometer Fluorescent and colorimetric 1.0 × 10−9 M Spiked water samples Na+, Mg2+, K+, Cr3+, Mn2+, Co2+, Ni2+, Fe3+, Cu2+, Zn2+, Ag+, Cd2+, and Pb2+ did not interfere Rhodamine B [89]

11 Hg(II) Spectrofluorometer Fluorescence 14.2 × 10−9 M 0–5 × 10−7 M Aqueous solutions Cd2+, Cu2+, and Ag+ do not interfere Thioether-appended dipeptide [90]

12 Hg(II) Spectrofluorometer Fluorescence 0.5 × 10−9 M 0.0005–0.01 μM Lake water samples Zn2+, Pb2+, Ni2+, Ca2+, Mg2+, Cu2+, Co2+, Cd2+, Fe3+, and Mn2+ did not interfere Carbon nanotubes [91]

13 Hg(II) Spectrofluorometer Fluorescent 1.74–3.83 × 10−6 M Living cells Minor interference from Ag+, Ca2+, Cd2+, Co2+, Cu2+, Fe2+, Fe3+, K+, Mg2+, Mn2+, Na+, Ni2+, Pb2+, Rb+, and Zn2+ Pyrene [92]

14 Hg(II) Spectrophotometer Colorimetric 0.4 × 10−6 M 0.1–4.2 μg mL−1 Water, biological, plant leaves, and soil samples Tolerance limit of the Cd2+, Zn2+, Ce3+, Ce4+, In3+, Cr3+, La3+, Yb3+, and Eu3+ is 300 μg mL−1 and the tolerance limit of the Co2+, Cu2+, Fe3+, Ti4+, Pb2+, Ni2+, and Ag+ is 100 μg mL−1 and at Hg(II) is 2.0 μg mL−1 2,4,7-Triamino-6-phenylpteridine [93]

15 Hg(II) Spectrofluorophotometer Fluorescent 1.0 × 10−7 M 2.0 × 10−7–3.0 × 10−5 M Water samples Selective in presence of Na+, K+, NH4 +, Ba2+, Zn2+, Cd2+, Mg2+, Ca2+, and Ni2+ Conjugated polymer multilayer films [94]

16 Hg(II) Spectrophotometer TGFRET3 0.49–0.87 × 10−9 M 1.0 × 10−9–1.0 × 10−8 M Water samples Selective in presence of Mn2+, Ba2+, Ni2+, Cu2+, Ca2+, Cr2+, Co2+, Cd2+, Mg2+, Zn2+, Al3+, Fe3+, and Pb2+ Gold nanoparticles [95]

17 Hg(II) Spectrofluorometer Fluorescent 1 × 10−9 M 0.01–0.12 μM Water samples Selective in presence of Zn2+, Pb2+, Ni2+, Co2+, Ca2+, Cu2+, Mg2+, Cd2+, Fe3+, and Mn2+ Carbon nanodots [96]

18 Hg(II) Spectrofluorometer Fluorescent 0.012 × 10−6 M 0-1 μM Tap and river water samples Selective in presence of Ag+, Pb2+, Na+, K+, Cr3+, Cd2+, Ba2+, Zn2+, Mg2+, Cu2+, Ni2+, Ca2+, Al3+, and Fe3+ Rhodamine [97]

19 Hg(II) Spectrofluorometer Fluorescence 2.24 × 10−9 M 5.0–100 nM Drinking water 20-fold of Ca2+, Mg2+, Zn2+, Cr3+, Pb2+, Cr6+, Mn2+, Cd2+, Fe3+, Al3+, and Ni2+, 10-fold of Fe2+, and Co2+, 5-fold of Cu2+, and the same concentration of Ag+ caused almost no interference Gold nanoparticles [98]

20 Hg(II) Spectrophotometer Optical chemical sensor 0.18 × 10−12 M 7.2 × 10−13–4.7 × 10−4 M Tap water, river water, and canned tuna fish Interference of Cu(II) eliminated with the addition of L-histidine as a masking agent Synthesized ionophore [99]

21 Hg(II) UV-Vis spectrophotometer Colorimetric sensor 5.0 × 10−6 M (visual), 1.0 × 10−7 M (UV-Vis) Aqueous solutions Mg2+, Ca2+, Zn2+, Cu2+, Cr3+, Fe3+, Pb2+, Ni2+, Co2+, and Ag+ did not interfere Dimethyl sulphoxide [100]

22 Hg(II) Fluorescence spectrophotometer Fluorescence probe 16 × 10−9 M 0.02–1.0 μM Aqueous solutions Selective in the determination of Hg2+ over other metal ions such as Fe3+, Ca2+, Mg2+, Mn2+, Cr3+, Ni2+, Cu2+, Co2+, and Pb2+ Gold nanoparticles [101]

23 Hg(II) Colorimetric 1.2 × 10−9 M 2–30 nM Water samples Na+ (2 mM), K+ (2 mM), Fe3+, Zn2+ and Mg2+ (0.1 mM), Ni2+, Co2+, Cd2+, Pb2+ and Cu2+ (50 μM), and Ag+ (3.5 μM) did not interfere with the detection of Hg2+ (25 nM) in the mentioned amounts Rhodamine B thiolactone [102]

#For the conversion of limit of detection values into moles per liter (M) the atomic weight of Hg is taken as 200.59 g, MeHg as 215.59g, EtHg as 229.59g, and PhHg as 277.59g.

1ONPCRs: oxygen-doped nitrogen-rich photoluminescent polymer carbon nanoribbons; 2Limit of quantification; 3TGFRET: time-gated fluorescence resonance energy transfer.

Table 3.

Analytical parameters of reviewed research papers about the speciation and determination of mercury by electrochemical instruments.

S. number Analyte Analytical instrument used for the detection Method Limit of detection (LOD)# Linearity range Analyzed samples Interference study Supporting media Reference
1 Hg(II) DP-ASV Electrochemical 4.99 × 10−8 M Ambient water, tap, and wastewaters Palladium-natural phosphate-carbon paste electrode enhances the selectivity for Hg2+ Natural phosphate electrodes [103]

2 Hg(II) SW-ASV Electrochemical 0.04 × 10−6 M 0.2–10.0 μM Foodstuffs Simultaneously both Cd2+ and Hg2+ are determined and 1,000-fold for K+, Na+, Li+, NH4 +, Ca2+, Mg2+, Pb2+, Zn2+, Cr3+, Fe2+, Co2+, and Al3+ did not interfere Carbon paste electrode [104]

3 Hg(II) Differential pulse voltammeter Electrochemical 4.48 × 10−10 M 0.2–10 μg L−1 Spiked fish and plant samples Cu(II), Mg(II), As(III), and Cr(II) were possible interferers 4,4′-Bipyridine-silver polymer [105]

4 Hg(II) Cyclic voltammeter Electrochemical 0.8 × 10−14 M 10−14–10−7 M Cu2+, Pb2+, Ni2+, Zn2+, Cr3+, Co3+, As5+, Fe2+, and Fe3+ did not interfere Gold atomic cluster-chitosan [106]

5 Hg(II) Voltammeter
(cyclic and differential pulse)
Biosensor 3.93 × 10−12 M 0.005–0.034 mM Water samples The working potential controlled to minimize the interference of other metal ions in test medium PANI and PANI-co-PDTDA polymer films [107]

6 Hg(II) ASV Electrochemical 4.98 × 10−9 M 4–160 ppb Aquatic solutions Glassy carbon electrode [108]

7 Hg(II) SW-ASV Electrochemical 9.2 × 10−5 M 0.1–150.0 nM Soil, gasoline, fish, tap, and wastewaters 400-fold mass ratio of Cu2+, Mn2+, Zn2+, Cr3+, Cr6+, Fe3+, Fe2+, Ni2+, and Co2+ did not interfere in the simultaneous determination of Cd2+, Pb2+, and Hg2+ Triphenyl phosphine [109]

8 Hg(II) Potentiometer Electrochemical 9.77 × 10−6 M (PME)1
7.76 × 10−7 M (CGE)1
1.0 × 10−1–5.0 × 10−6 M (PME) 
1.0 × 10−1–5.0 × 10−7 M (CGE)
Water samples Ag+ has small interference in the determination of Hg2+ 1,3-Alternate thiacalix[4]crown [110]

9 Hg(II) Potentiometer Electrochemical 1.0 × 10−8 M 5.0 × 10−8–1.0 × 10−2 M The selectivity coefficient of the other ions is ranging from 2.9 to 4.9 PVC membrane [111]

10 Hg(II) DPSV Electrochemical 0.05 × 10−12 M 1–500 nM Water samples Pb2+, Th3+, Cu2+, Cd2+, Ni2+, and Al3+ did not interfere Gold nanoparticles [112]

11 Hg(II) SW-ASV Ultrasonic extraction Indoor dust samples Gold nanoparticles [113]

12 Hg(II) Cyclic voltammeter Electrochemical 1.9 × 10−9 M 40–170 μg L−1 Wastewaters Biotinyl Somatostatin-14 peptide [114]

13 Hg(II) Potentiometer Electrochemical 3 × 10−6 M 5 × 10−6–1 × 10−2 M Contaminated water Na+, K+, Mg2+, Ca2+, Zn2+, Cu2+, Cr3+, Fe3+, and Pb2+ did not interfere in the determination of Hg2+ Dithizone and di-n-butyl phthalate [115]

14 Hg(II) DP-ASV Electrochemical 0.483 × 10−6 M 300–700 ng mL−1 No interference of Cd, Ni, Zn, and Cu in 50-, 25-, 100-, and 5-fold in excess, respectively Nanocellulosic fibers [116]

15 Hg(II) Electrochemical 0.5 × 10−9 M 1.0 nM–1.0 μM Zn2+, Mg2+, Ca2+, Pb2+, Cd2+, Mn2+, Cu2+, Ni2+, and Fe3+ did not interfere G-quadruplex–hemin (G4–hemin) [117]

#For the conversion of limit of detection values into moles per liter (M) the atomic weight of Hg is taken as 200.59 g, MeHg as 215.59 g, EtHg as 229.59 g, and PhHg as 277.59 g.

1PME: polymeric membrane electrode and CGE: coated graphite electrode.

Analytical instruments: DP-ASV: differential pulse anodic stripping voltammeter; SW-ASV: square wave anodic stripping voltammeter.

Table 4.

Analytical parameters of reviewed research papers about the speciation and determination of mercury by miscellaneous techniques.

S. number Analyte Analytical instrument used for the detection Method Limit of detection (LOD)# Linearity range Analyzed samples Interference study Supporting media Reference
1 Speciation Continuous mercury analyzer Thermal desorption Solid samples (fly ash) [118]

2 GEM Portable mercury analyzer Atmosphere [119]

3 Hg(II) SERS1 2.24 × 10−12 M 0.001–0.5 ng mL−1 Drinking water samples Selective in presence of Zn2+, Mg2+, Fe3+, Cu2+, Pb2+, and Mn2+ Gold nanoparticles [120]

4 Hg(II) HPLC SPE 1.99 × 10−10–4.48 × 10−9 M 2.7–300 μg L−1 Water samples Simultaneously Ni2+, Co2+, and Hg2+ are determined Carbon nanotubes [121]

5 Hg(II) SERS 0.1 × 10−9 M 0.1–1000 nM Groundwater Ag+ was also determined along with Hg2+ and K+, Cu2+, Ag+, Cr3+, Fe3+, NH4 +, Ca2+, Co2+, Cd2+, and Zn2+ did not interfere Oligonucleotide-functionalized magnetic silica sphere [122]

6 Total Hg AMA Acid digestion Eggs and blood of Eretmochelys imbricata Along with mercury Cd, Cu, Zn, and Pb are also determined [123]

7 Hg(II) Luminescence spectrometer Fluorescence 3.0–9.0 × 10−9 M 0.05–1.0 μM Water samples Fairly selective in presence of Ag+, Fe3+, Zn2+, Ca2+, Mn2+, Mg2+, Co2+, Pb2+, Ni2+, Cd2+, and Cu2+ Silver nanoclusters [124]

8 Hg(II) X-ray fluorescence spectrometer Preconcentration 4.98 × 10−12 M Upto 20 mg L−1 Drinking water Activated carbon [125]

9 Total Hg DMA 0.14 ng Particulate matter GF/C filters [126]

10 MeHg and EtHg HPLC Chemiluminescence 0.16 ng g−1 0.5–20 ng Hg Soil and sediment samples Back extraction and another chemical process make the method selective for MeHg and EtHg Emetine dithiocarbamate [127]

11 Total Hg CV-CCPM-OES2 Microwave digestion 2.39 × 10−11 M 0.27–55 mg kg−1 Soil samples [128]

12 Hg(II) Chemodosimeter Fluorescence 1.71 × 10−9 M 1.0 × 10−7–1.0 × 10−6 M Blood serum of mice Rhodamine [129]

13 Hg(0) XRF Acid digestion 9.97 × 10−8 M Soils from industrial complex [130]

14 Total Hg DMA Combustion 0.12 ng 0.5–5 ng Soil and leaf samples [131]

15 MeHg and Hg(II) GC-MS Matrix solid-phase dispersion 0.06 (MeHg) and 0.12 (Hg(II)) μg/g Tuna fish, angel shark, and guitarfish [132]

16 GEM Concentration-weighted trajectory model Particulate matter QFF [133]

#For the conversion of limit of detection values into moles per liter (M) the atomic weight of Hg is taken as 200.59 g, MeHg as 215.59 g, EtHg as 229.59 g, and PhHg as 277.59 g.

1SERS: surface enhanced Raman scattering; 2CV-CCPM-OES: cold-vapor capacitively coupled plasma microtorch fluorescence spectrometry.

Analytical instruments: HPLC: high performance liquid chromatography; AMA: automatic mercury analyzer; DMA: direct mercury analyzer; XRF: X-ray fluorescence.

In the analysis of mercury species in various environmental samples, selectivity and range of linearity of the method also play a major role due to the presence of multielements in the real samples. Based on the present study, most of the spectrophotometric, spectrofluorometric, and electroanalytical methods were discussed regarding the interfering ion studies and linearity range of the method. These studies will give a clear picture about the determination of mercury species in presence of other ions which validates the methods.

Regarding the merits of the different methods for speciation and analysis of mercury, the usage of nonchromatographic methods has an advantage in terms of speed of analysis, inexpensiveness, and convenience to find the mercury in various environmental samples. But for the complete speciation studies of mercury in biological and environmental samples chromatographic methods are useful [156]. The validity of analytical methods can be enhanced with the analysis of the certified reference materials along with the real samples. In recent years, the researchers mostly preferred GC coupled with AFS or ICP-MS for the determination and speciation of mercury in natural waters [157]. In electroanalytical methods, the validity of the methods depends on various factors such as type of electrode, preconcentration, and supporting materials [139] and these methods are cost-effective, selective, and sensitive [143].

3. Conclusions

The present study revealed the recent developments in the determination and speciation studies of mercury by a range of analytical techniques. Our previous study [2] also described the challenges in the methodology for mercury determination. This review showed that most researchers focused on the determination of Hg(II) rather than speciation studies. On the other hand, the speciation studies [23, 24, 29, 36, 37, 44, 47, 50, 54, 58, 68, 69, 76, 118] accurately revealed the toxicity of mercury rather than the total mercury or single species determinations. In the papers reviewed, most researchers were aware of the interfering ions in the determination of mercury and its different forms. In the analytical method, a study of interfering ions is very important because it can predict the selectivity of the method. In future studies, it will be important to focus on speciation studies of mercury rather than a determination of the total mercury.

Conflict of Interests

The authors declare that there is no conflict of interests regarding the publication of this paper.

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