The Spectrum of Pb : Lead Levels in Paint

Abstract

There are still wide-spread sales of lead-based paint across Asia, Africa, Latin America, and Europe. Lead exposure accounted for almost half a million deaths in 2016, which is relatively the same as deaths due to tobacco smoke exposure. Lead based paint in homes is thought to be a major contributor to this problem. The scope of this research is aimed to develop a method to obtain the lowest limit of detection for Pb on the Agilent 4200 microwave plasma atomic emission spectroscopy (MP-AES) and to determine Pb levels in paint based on the color and condition as well as soils that may have been contaminated with Pb by paint. Samples were taken from the same building, along with colored paint from different sources that were not currently obtained, and analyzed using analytical techniques on the MPAES.