The presented dissertation thesis deals with the use of UV-photochemical generation of volatile compounds (UV-PVG) as a derivatization technique for the combination of high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS) detection. Two model elements arsenic and mercury and their compounds were selected for the speciation analysis. The work was divided into several parts that follow. In the first part of the research, the apparatus for the UV-photochemical generation of the volatile mercury compounds and their detection with a new continuum source and high-resolution atomic absorption spectrometer (HR-CS AAS) with an externally heated detection tube was constructed. The analytical method was adapted for use with atomic fluorescence detection with the aim to improve sensitivity of the determination. Furthermore, apparatus for the electrochemical generation of cold mercury vapor with AAS detection was built. The construction of the apparatus was followed by optimization of the reaction conditions (concentration and flow of electrochemical reagents: sulfuric and hydrochloric acid, mobile phase, carrier medium, flow rate of the carrier gas and localization of its introduction), determination of the analytical figures of merit, and comparation of the methods. Both...

The main aim of this thesis was the development of conjugation of existing methods for analysis of arsenic-glutathione complexes (As-GS complexes) together with simple arsenic species (iAs, MMAs, DMAs) during simple run. The basic technique for analysis of As-GS complexes was the HPLC-ICP-MS method with a reverse phase separation column (C18). The separation problem of simple species has been overcome by extending of system by postcolumn hydride generation with cryotrapping system (HG-CT). The resulting HPLC/HG-CT-ICP-MS system provides a complex analysis of all the above-mentioned analytes. According to the currently available resources, it is an innovative system, where for the first time all the simple arsenic species (iAs, MMAs, DMAs) and the As-GS complexes were separated. Under the given conditions, the detection limit for the As-GS complexes of 1.9 pg cm-3 in the RP-HPLC-ICP-MS system (a quantification limit of 6.5 pg cm-3 ) was achieved at a sensitivity of 468 CPS s pg-1 . The HG-CT-ICP-MS system provided a detection limit for iAs of 1.2 pg cm-3 at a sensitivity of 1121 CPS s pg-1 , for MMAs of 0.043 pg cm-3 at a sensitivity of 895 CPS s pg-1 and for DMAs of 0.076 pg.cm-3 at a sensitivity of 926 CPS s pg-1 . This method was applied to achieve another aim, studying the pathways of enzymatic...

(EN) The presented dissertation thesis summarizes the results contained in five original research papers that were published in prestigious international scientific journals in the field of analytical chemistry and atomic spectrometry. It is devoted to the method of generation of volatile compounds using a tetrahydroborate reaction and detection in a quartz multiatomizer by atomic absorption spectrometry. The thesis can be divided into two thematic parts - speciation analysis of arsenic based on hydride generation technique with collection and separation in a cryogenic trap and generation of volatile species of transition metals. In the first thematic part pre-reduction of pentavalent inorganic and methylated arsenicals has been studied. A simple setup for on-line pre-reduction employing thioglycolic acid as a fast pre-reductant has been developed, connected with a current hydride generator and applied/verified to oxidation state specific arsenic speciation analysis of human urine samples. In the same method the possibility of drying the gaseous phase from water vapor has been investigated to avoid incidental blocking the cryogenic trap by frozen water and to decrease fluctuations of signal baseline. Pronounced losses of methylated species have been discovered on Nafion tube dryer currently used in...