Heavy metals analysis
Determination of arsenic, cadmium, lead, mercury and other metals in cannabis and cannabis products by ICP-MS.
Why test for heavy metals
Metals such as mercury, cadmium, chromium, barium or aluminium are widely dispersed in the environment, and the contamination of its components (water, agricultural soils) varies widely.
Cannabis has been found to readily accumulate metals from contaminated soils.
AHPA 2013 maximum limits
The American Herbal Products Association has proposed these maximum oral intake limits for herbal products
- 10.0 μg/day Arsenic (As)
- 4.1 μg/day Cadmium (Cd)
- 6.0 μg/day Lead (Pb)
- 2.0 μg/day Mercury (as Me-Hg)
Scope of testing
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Arsenic (As) AHPA limit 10.0 μg/day
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Cadmium (Cd) AHPA limit 4.1 μg/day
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Lead (Pb) AHPA limit 6.0 μg/day
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Mercury (Hg, as Me-Hg) AHPA limit 2.0 μg/day
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Nickel (Ni)
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Barium (Ba)
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Strontium (Sr)
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Aluminium (Al)
How the analysis works
The analytical method consists of mineralisation in acid followed by ICP-MS analysis
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1
Sample delivery
Deliver the sample according to the instructions for delivery of samples; on receipt it is registered and prepared for analysis.
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2
Acid mineralisation
The sample is digested by mineralisation in acid so that the metals are transferred into solution.
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3
ICP-MS analysis
The metal content is determined by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry and you receive the results in a report.
Contact us
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us. You can call us or write us an e-mail – we will be happy to help and answer as soon as possible.