2. Spectroscopy and spectrometry

Spectroscopy is the science of how different types of radiation interact with matter. Spectroscopic measurements are widely applied to inorganic environmental analyses, such as metal speciation analyses.

Spectrometry, on the other hand, concerns instrumentation and measurements for spectroscopic studies. The various spectroscopic approaches form the basis of environmental analytical techniques such as sensors and biosensors, examples of which will be given in this section. However, at present, the majority of environmental analytical methods for organic pollutants are based on spectrometric measurements coupled with separative techniques such as chromatography.

Spectroscopic techniques can be classified according to the measurement process: absorption, emission and scattering of electromagnetic radiation.

Radiation-matter...