Academic Journal
Measurement uncertainty of fluoride determination in vegetation: contributions from sampling and analysis.
| Τίτλος: | Measurement uncertainty of fluoride determination in vegetation: contributions from sampling and analysis. |
|---|---|
| Συγγραφείς: | Antonsson E; Matís, Icelandic Food and Biotech R&D, Vínlandsleið 12, IS-113, Reykjavík, Iceland. egill.antonsson@hafogvatn.is.; Marine and Freshwater Research Institute, Fornubúðir 5, IS-220, Hafnarfjörður, Iceland. egill.antonsson@hafogvatn.is., Eyjólfsdóttir EI; Marine and Freshwater Research Institute, Fornubúðir 5, IS-220, Hafnarfjörður, Iceland., Gíslason K; Matís, Icelandic Food and Biotech R&D, Vínlandsleið 12, IS-113, Reykjavík, Iceland.; Marine and Freshwater Research Institute, Fornubúðir 5, IS-220, Hafnarfjörður, Iceland. |
| Πηγή: | Environmental monitoring and assessment [Environ Monit Assess] 2026 Oct 09; Vol. 198 (11). Date of Electronic Publication: 2026 Oct 09. |
| Τύπος έκδοσης: | Journal Article |
| Γλώσσα: | English |
| Στοιχεία περιοδικού: | Publisher: Springer Country of Publication: Netherlands NLM ID: 8508350 Publication Model: Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1573-2959 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 01676369 NLM ISO Abbreviation: Environ Monit Assess Subsets: MEDLINE |
| Imprint Name(s): | Publication: 1998- : Dordrecht : Springer Original Publication: Dordrecht, Holland ; Boston : D. Reidel Pub. Co., c1981- |
| Ιατρικοί όροι (MeSH): | Fluorides*/analysis , Environmental Monitoring*/methods , Plants*/chemistry , Environmental Pollutants*/analysis, Uncertainty ; Iceland |
| Περίληψη: | Accumulation of fluoride in vegetation can have ecological and toxicological implications not only for the plants themselves, but for other organisms higher up the food chain. Assessment of fluoride concentration in vegetation requires reliable estimates of the associated measurement uncertainty. We investigate the fluoride concentration in three types of vegetation in Iceland (grass, downy birch, and rowan) and evaluate the contributions of both sampling and chemical analysis to the measurement uncertainty. Sampling of vegetation is performed following a standardized protocol at predetermined locations in the vicinity of aluminum smelters in Iceland, with subsequent determination of fluoride using ion selective electrodes. Measurement uncertainty arising from sampling and analysis was evaluated using an approach that couples duplicate sampling with duplicate analysis. The results of this analysis indicate that sampling contributes substantially to the measurement uncertainty, dominating the uncertainty budget for grass and downy birch, while analytical and sampling uncertainty was found to be of comparable magnitude for rowan. These findings demonstrate that estimates of measurement uncertainty that are based solely on data from the chemical analysis part severely underestimate the total measurement uncertainty. When expressed as relative expanded measurement uncertainty, the measurement uncertainty of fluoride content in vegetation is found to be 43%, 45%, and 13% for grass, downy birch, and rowan, respectively. The approach applied here and the obtained results provides a reliable way to incorporate contributions from sampling into assessment of measurement uncertainty in environmental monitoring using vegetation. The results are expected to allow for meaningful interpretation of fluoride data in vegetation when comparing them to limit values in permits or to species-specific damage thresholds of vegetation. (© 2026. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.) |
| Competing Interests: | Declarations. Ethical approval: All authors have read, understood, and have complied as applicable with the statement on “Ethical responsibilities of Authors” as found in the Instructions for Authors. Competing interests: The authors have no competing interests to declare that are relevant to the content of this article. |
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| Contributed Indexing: | Keywords: Environmental monitoring; Fluoride in vegetation; Measurement uncertainty; Measurement uncertainty of sampling |
| Substance Nomenclature: | Q80VPU408O (Fluorides) 0 (Environmental Pollutants) |
| Entry Date(s): | Date Created: 20261008 Date Completed: 20261009 Latest Revision: 20261008 |
| Update Code: | 20261009 |
| DOI: | 10.1007/s10661-026-15981-z |
| PMID: | 42850479 |
| Βάση Δεδομένων: | MEDLINE |
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