Dan Keefe, Matt Martin, and Joey Price

The mercury content in canned Albacore tuna, canned eel, and fresh ahi tuna were analyzed using ICPAES. The samples were prepared by microwave digestion then diluted into 50 mL volumetric flasks before running on ICPAES. The ICP was calibrated with a DL or 1.5 ppb. The eel had the highest mercury content with 0.524 +/- 0.1 ug Hg/g fish; canned albacore is second with 0.499 +/- 0.098 ug Hg/g fish and the fresh ahi tuna had the least amount of mercury with 0.449 +/- 0.066 ug Hg/g fish. All the values were within 1 standard deviation of the mean of the EPA’s accepted mercury level.