Validation of mercury analyzer for determination of mercury in snake fruit

Mercury analyzer, an instrument specifically designed for mercury (Hg) determination, has been developed and validated for quantification of Hg levels in Salak or snake fruit (Salacca zalacca) obtained in Yogyakarta. Some analytical figures of merit, namely linearity and range, precision, accuracy, limit of detection (LOD) and limit of quantification (LOQ) have been evaluated. The developed method is linear over 0.5 – 20 μg/mL with coefficient of correlation (r) 0.99. LOD and LOQ obtained were 0,03 μg/L and 0,1 μg/L respectively. This method was quite precise with the relative standard deviation (RSD) values found to be 9.73% and 10.41% for its intraday and interday precisions. These RSD values were lower than those required by Horwitz. The mean recovery percentage was 97.24% indicating that the developed method was accurate for Hg determination in snake fruit. Mercury levels in the marketed snake fruit samples were found in the range of 4.87-15.08 μg/Kg which were lower than maximum permissible limit set by Indonesian government regulation, as 30 μg/Kg.