Production of a beef reference material - Characterization by plasma techniques

• Grant number: 25/21765-2
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: October 01, 2025
• End date: September 30, 2026
• Field of knowledge: Physical Sciences and Mathematics - Chemistry - Analytical Chemistry
• Principal Investigator: Ana Rita de Araujo Nogueira
• Grantee: Geovanna Morgado da Penha
• Host Institution: Embrapa Pecuária Sudeste. Empresa Brasileira de Pesquisa Agropecuária (EMBRAPA). São Carlos , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 22/12732-5 - Transparency in the Brazilian production chains of agricultural export commodities: a holistic study of elemental and isotopic fingerprints, AP.TEM

Abstract

In the fingerprinting studies for authenticity, geographical origin and farming systems of Brazilian beef products, the reliability on the analytical results of trace elements is of crucial importance for the validity of the needed statistical treatments. The use of adequate and readily available certified reference materials enables the quality assurance of the applied analytical techniques, and hence, one of the project's goals is the production of a beef reference material. This undergraduate research (IC) activity plan aims to develop the scientific skills and experience of the student by means of active participation in the production of a new Brazilian beef reference material. Throughout the process, the student will have the opportunity to identify the elements of interest in the reference materials Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectrometry (ICP-OES) and Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS).