Determination of cadmium in water and herbal medicine by Penicillium chrysogenum immobilized on silica gel for flame atomic absorption spectroscopy

Penicillium chrysogenum was immobilized on silica to develop a simple and cost effective method for solid phase extraction of Cd(II) and determination using flame atomic absorption spectrometry (FAAS). The sorbent was characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and packed into a column. The conditions for quantitative sorption and desorption of Cd(II) were optimized. The preconcentration factor was 100 while detection limit was 0.61 µg L^?1 with a relative standard deviation of 1.0%. The method was applied for determination of Cd in herbal medicine and tap water.