Determination of trace metal ions by AAS in natural water samples after preconcentration of pyrocatechol violet complexes on an activated carbon column

A simple preconcentration method is described for the determination of Cu, Mn, Co, Cd, Pb, Ni and Cr in water samples by flame AAS. Trace metal ions in water were sorbed as pyrocatechol violet complexes on activated carbon column at the pH range of 4–8, then eluted with 1 M HNO₃ in acetone. The effect of major cations and anions of the natural water samples on the sorption of metal ions has been also investigated. The concentration of the metal ions detected after preconcentration was in agreement with the added amount. The present method was found to be applicable to the preconcentration of Cu, Mn, Co, Cd, Pb, Ni and Cr in natural water samples with good results such as R.S.D. from 3 to 8% (N=10) and detection limits under 70 ng l⁻¹.     

8-Hydroxyquinoline anchored to silica gel via new moderate size linker: synthesis and applications as a metal ion collector for their flame atomic absorption spectrometric determination

The silica gel modified with (3-aminopropyl-triethoxysilane) was reacted with 5-formyl-8-hydroxyquinoline (FHOQ_x) to anchor 8-quinolinol ligand on the silica gel. It was characterised with cross polarisation magic angle spinning (CPMAS) NMR and diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transformation (DRIFT) spectroscopy and used for the preconcentration of Cu(II), Pb(II), Ni(II), Fe(III), Cd(II), Zn(II) and Co(II) prior to their determination by flame atomic absorption spectrometry. The surface area of the modified silica gel has been found to be 227 m² g⁻¹ and the two pKa values as 3.8 and 8.0. The optimum pH ranges for quantitative sorption are 4.0–7.0, 4.5–7.0, 3.0–6.0, 5.0–8.0, 5.0–8.0, 5.0–8.0 and 4.0–7.0 for Cu, Pb, Fe, Zn, Co, Ni and Cd, respectively. All the metals can be desorbed with 2.5 mol l⁻¹ HCl or HNO₃. The sorption capacity for these metal ions is in range of 92–448.0 μmol g⁻¹ and follows the order Cd3, NaCl, NaBr, Na₂SO₄ and Na₃PO₄, glycine, sodium citrate, EDTA, humic acid and cations Ca(II), Mg(II), Mn(II) and Cr(III) in the sorption of all the seven metal ions are reported. The preconcentration factors are 150, 250, 200, 300, 250, 300 and 200 for Cd, Co, Zn, Cu, Pb, Fe and Ni, respectively and t_1/2 values <1 min except for Ni. The 95% extraction by batch method takes ≤25 min. The simultaneous enrichment and determination of all the metals are possible if the total load of the metal ions is less than sorption capacity. In river water samples all these metal ions were enriched with the present ligand anchored silica gel and determined with flame atomic absorption spectrometer (R.S.D.≤6.4%). Cobalt contents of pharmaceutical samples (vitamin tablet) were preconcentrated with the present chelating silica gel and estimated by flame AAS, with R.S.D.1.4%. The results are in the good agreement with the certified value, 1.99 μg g⁻¹ of the tablets. Iron and copper in certified reference materials (synthetic) SLRS-4 and SLEW-3 have been enriched with the modified silica gel and estimated with R.S.D.<5%.     

Amberlite XAD-2 functionalized with o-aminophenol: synthesis and applications as extractant for copper(II), cobalt(II), cadmium(II), nickel(II), zinc(II) and lead(II)

A stable chelating resin matrix was synthesized by covalently linking o-aminophenol (o-AP) with the benzene ring of the polystyrene–divinylbenzene resin, Amberlite XAD-2, through a –N=N– group. Elemental analyses, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and infrared spectra have characterized the resulting chelating resin. It has been used to preconcentrate Cu²⁺, Cd²⁺, Co²⁺, Ni²⁺, Zn²⁺ and Pb²⁺, prior to their determination by flame atomic absorption spectrometry. The optimum pH values for quantitative sorption of Cu, Cd, Co, Ni, Zn and Pb are 6.2–7.4, 5.6–7.2, 5.6–9.0, 6.0–9.0, 5.7–7.0 and 5.0–6.0, respectively. These metals are desorbed (recovery 91–98%) with 4 mol dm⁻³ HNO₃. The sorption capacity of the resin is 3.37, 3.42, 3.29, 3.24, 2.94 and 3.32 mg of metal g⁻¹ of resin, respectively, for Cu, Cd, Co, Ni, Zn and Pb. The effect of NaF, NaCl, NaNO₃, Na₂SO₄, and Na₃PO₄ on the sorption of these metal ions has been investigated. These electrolytes are tolerable up to 0.01 mol dm⁻³ in case of all the metal ions, except Cl⁻ which is tolerable even up to 0.1 mol dm⁻³ for Zn and 1.0 mol dm⁻³ for Pb. The preconcentration factor for Cu, Cd, Co, Ni, Zn and Pb are 50, 50, 100, 65, 40 and 40 (concentration level 10–25 μg dm⁻³) respectively. Simultaneous enrichment of the six metals is possible. The method has been applied to determine Cu, Cd, Co, Ni, Zn and Pb content in well water samples (RSD≤8%).     

Multi-elemental analysis of non-food packaging materials by inductively coupled plasma-time of flight-mass spectrometry

Commercial non-food packaging materials of four different matrices (paper, low density polyethylene (LDPE), polyethylene-polypropylene (PE-PP) and high density polyethylene (HDPE)) were examined for the content of Cr, Ni, Cu, Zn, As, Mo, Cd, Sb, Ba, Hg, Tl, Pb and U. The examined samples (0.17–0.35 g) were digested in HNO₃ and H₂O₂ (papers, LDPE and PE-PP) and in HNO₃, H₂SO₄ and H₂O₂ (HDPE) using microwave assisted high pressure system. The inductively coupled plasma-time of flight-mass spectrometry (ICP-TOFMS) has been employed as the detection technique. All measurements were carried out using internal standardization. Yttrium and rhodium (50 ng g⁻¹) were used as internal standards. The detection and quantification limits obtained were in the range of 0.005 ng g⁻¹ (⁵²Cr) to 0.51 ng g⁻¹ (⁶⁶Zn) and 0.015 μg g⁻¹ (⁵²Cr) to 2.02 μg g⁻¹ (⁶⁶Zn) of dry mass, respectively. The evaluated contents (mg kg⁻¹) of particular elements in the examined materials were as follows: 0.22–219; <1.05–9.03; 1.25–112; <2.02–449; <0.98–<1.30; <0.36–2.06; <0.29–113; <0.22–44.1; <0.06–57.4; <0.66–<0.88; <0.08–0.24; <0.13–1222 and <0.08–0.44 for Cr, Ni, Cu, Zn, As, Mo, Cd, Sb, Ba, Hg, Tl, Pb and U, respectively.     

Cellulose based macromolecular chelator having pyrocatechol as an anchored ligand: synthesis and applications as metal extractant prior to their determination by flame atomic absorption spectrometry

Pyrocatechol is immobilized on cellulose via ---NH---CH₂---CH₂---NH---SO₂---C₆H₄---N=N--- linker and the resulting macromolecular chelator characterized by IR, TGA, CPMAS ¹³C NMR and elemental analyses. It has been used for enrichment of Cu(II), Zn(II), Fe(III), Ni(II), Co(II), Cd(II) and Pb(II) prior to their determination by flame atomic absorption spectrometry (FAAS). The pH ranges for quantitative sorption (98.0–99.4%) are 4.0–7.0, 5.0–6.0, 3.0–4.0, 5.0–7.0, 5.0–8.0, 7.0–8.0 and 4.0–5.0, respectively. The desorption was found quantitative with 0.5 mol dm⁻³ HCl/HNO₃ (for Pb). The sorption capacity of the matrix for the seven metal ions has been found in the range 85.3–186.2 μmol g⁻¹. The optimum flow rate of metal ion solution for quantitative sorption of metal onto pyrocatechol functionalized cellulose as determined by column method, is 2–6 cm³ min⁻¹, whereas for desorption it is 2–4 cm³ min⁻¹. The tolerance limits for NaCl, NaBr, NaI, NaNO₃, Na₂SO₄, Na₃PO_4, humic acid, EDTA, ascorbic acid, citric acid, sodium tartrate, Ca(II) and Mg(II) in the sorption of all the seven metal ions are reported. Ascorbic acid is tolerable up to 0.8 mmol dm⁻³ with Cu and Pb where as sodium tartrate does not interfere up to 0.6 mmol dm⁻³ with Pb. There is no interference of NaBr, NaCl and NaNO₃ up to a concentration of 0.5 mol dm⁻³, in the sorption of Cu(II), Cd(II) and Fe(III) on to the chelating cellulose matrix The preconcentration factors are between 75 and 300 and t_1/2 values ≤5 min for all the metal ions. Simultaneous sorption of Cu, Zn, Ni and Co is possible at pH 5.0 if their total concentration does not exceed lowest sorption capacity. The present matrix coupled with FAAS has been used to enrich and determine the seven metal ions in river and tap water samples (relative standard deviation (R.S.D.) 1.05–7.20%) and synthetic certified water sample SLRS-4 (NRC, Canada) with R.S.D. 2.03%. The cobalt present in pharmaceutical vitamin tablets was also preconcentrated on the modified cellulose and determined by FAAS (R.S.D. 1.87%).     

Analytical procedures for improved trace element detection limits in polar ice from Arctic Canada using ICP-SMS

Analytical procedures have been developed for the reliable determination of 19 trace elements (Ag, Al, Ba, Bi, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Pb, Rb, Sb, Sc, Sr, Tl, U, V, Zn) in ice samples at pg g⁻¹ and fg g⁻¹ concentrations using ICP-sector field mass spectrometry (ICP-SMS). Concentrations of most elements in the high purity water and doubly distilled HNO₃ employed were distinctly lower than previously reported values. The accuracy of the results was carefully evaluated using the certified water reference material SLRS-4. Contributions of unwanted trace elements due to acidification of the ice samples (0.5% HNO₃) to the total element budget amounted to only 0.001 pg g⁻¹ for Bi, 0.34 pg g⁻¹ for Cr, 0.2 pg g⁻¹ for Fe, 0.004 pg g⁻¹ for Pb, 0.00015 pg g⁻¹ for U and 0.0025 pg g⁻¹ for V: compared to the concentrations of the metals in ice these are negligible. The use of a detergent (0.05%) in the rinsing solution (0.5% HNO₃), helped to reduce memory effects by 59–98%, depending on the element considered; this resulted in shorter washing times between samples (i.e. 1 min) and improved analysis time. Adopting strict clean room procedures, the detection limit for Pb (0.06 pg g⁻¹) is a factor of ten lower than the current state-of-the-art. Compared to previous studies, the improved LODs obtained here for other trace elements amount to 2× (Ag), 4× (Sb), 5× (Ba), 6× (Cu, Mn, U), 9× (Bi), 13× (Cd), 18× (Fe) and 21× (V). The developed analytical protocols were successfully applied to the determination of selected trace elements in age-dated ice samples from the Canadian High Arctic. The toxic trace element Tl (median: 0.16 pg g⁻¹; range: 0.03–1.32 pg g⁻¹) and the lithogenic reference element Sc (0.53 pg g⁻¹; 0.06–2.9 pg g⁻¹) have been determined in a polar ice core for the first time.     

A flow injection-ETAAS system for the on-line determination of total and dissolved silica in waters

In this work total (Si-tot) and ‘soluble’ or reactive (Si-sol) concentrations of silicon in natural and tap waters were sequentially determined by electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry (ETAAS). First, samples were on-line diluted based on the merging-zone principle in order to allow the determination of Si-tot within the 300–1000 μgSi l⁻¹ range. After the dilution process, a sub-sample was collected in the capillary of a sampling arm assembly (SAA). Thereafter, samples were subject to a precipitation/dissolution process in order to allow the determination of Si-sol within the 280–850 μgSi l⁻¹. Si-sol was precipitated with ammonium chloride and collected on the walls of a knotted coil. The precipitate was dissolved with ammonium molybdate in an acidic medium (HNO₃) and a sub-sample was then collected in the SAA. In both cases, 10 μl volumes of the sub-sample were injected into the atomizer with the previous introduction of 20 ng of Eu as chemical modifier (10 μl) by the spectrometer autosampler. The recovery values obtained with natural waters spiked samples were over 46% and the agreement between observed and certified samples values was good. The proportion of Si-sol in comparison with the Si-tot was high (85–95%) in most natural waters. The precision of the method was 2.4–3.5 and 4.5–6.2% (n=10) for the determination of Si-tot and Si-sol, respectively.     

Simultaneous separation and preconcentration of trace elements in water samples by coprecipitation on manganese dioxide using D-glucose as reductant for KMnO(4)

A field oriented and economical method of coprecipitation of trace elements like Al, Au, Bi, Cd, Co, Cu, Fe, Mo, Ni, Pb, Pd, Ti, V, W, Zn and REE has been developed. A novel reductant D-glucose, reduces KMnO₄ in solution to form a precipitate of MnO_2. Two liters of clear natural water sample is adjusted to pH 3.5–4.0, and is treated with 10 ml of 1% KMnO₄ and 20 ml of 0.1% D-glucose. The sample is heated at a temperature of 75–80 °C, MnO₂ is formed which coprecipitates the above trace elements. The precipitate is separated by filtration, dissolved in 2 ml of 50% HCl and 2 ml of 30% H₂O₂ and diluted to 25 ml for analysis using AAS and ICP-AES. The recoveries were found to be 96–105%. The preconcentration factor is 80. Limits of determination by the proposed method in natural waters are 1 μg l⁻¹ for Al, Cd, Mo, V, W, Ti and Zn, 5 μg l⁻¹ for Au, Bi, Co, Cu, Fe, Ni, Pb and Pd and 8 μg l⁻¹ for REE. The RSD of the present procedure (n=5) is 8% at 5 μg l⁻¹ level. Twenty water samples can be analyzed by an analyst in an 8-h day.     

Analysis of fish otoliths by electrothermal vaporization inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry: aspects of precipitating otolith calcium with hydrofluoric acid for trace element determination

A method is developed for determination of trace elements, including Ag, As, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Mn, Ni, Se, Tl and Zn, in fish otoliths by electrothermal vaporization inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ETV-ICP-MS). Hydrofluoric acid was used to precipitate calcium resulting from acid dissolution of otolith calcium carbonate. Initial acidity of the sample solution influenced the precipitation efficiency of calcium fluoride. Up to 99.5% of Ca was precipitated in solutions that contained less than 2% (v/v) HNO₃. Recoveries of the elements obtained from spiked artificial otolith solutions were between 90 and 103%. Stabilization of the elements within the ETV cell was achieved with 0.3 μg Pd/0.2 μg Rh chemical modifier that also afforded optimum sensitivity for multielement determination. The method was validated by the analysis of a fish otolith reference material (CRM) of emperor snapper, and then applied to the determination of the trace elements in otoliths of several fish species captured in Raritan Bay, New Jersey. Results indicated that fish physiology and biological processes could influence the levels of Cu, Mn, Se and Zn in the otoliths of fish inhabiting a similar aqueous environment. Otolith concentrations of Cr and Ni did not show any significant differences among different species. Concentrations for Ag, As, Cd, Co and Tl were also not significantly different, but were very low indicating low affinity of otolith calcium carbonate to these elements.     

Potentiometric titration of Co(II) in presence of Co(III)

A potentiometric titration for cobalt(II) determination in the presence of Co(III) based on the oxidation of Co(II) with Na₂CrO₄ in ethylenediamine medium and back-titration of the oxidant excess with (NH₄)₂Fe(SO₄)₂ in acid medium is described. The titration is monitored with a Pt indicator electrode and carried out until the greatest jump of potential from one drop of titrant appears. A RSD smaller than 1.5% has been obtained for 50–300 μmol Co(II). The method proposed was applied in the analysis of a new type electroless copper plating solutions containing Co(II)-ethylenediamine complex compounds as reducing agents. Cu(II), Co(III) and Cr(III) do not interfere in the determination of Co(II).     

Comparative study of pretreatment methods for the determination of metals in atmospheric aerosol by electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry

A comparative study of pretreatment methods for the determination of 10 elements (As, Cd, Pb, V, Ni, Mn, Cr, Cu, Fe, Al) in atmospheric aerosols by electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry (ETAAS) was conducted. For the digestion of the particulates collected in filters, six methods were compared using a mixture of HNO₃ and HF with or without the addition of various oxidative agents (HClO₄ or H₂O₂) or acids (HCl). The comparative study was performed using loaded cellulose filter samples, which were digested in Parr bombs and heated in a conventional oven at 170 °C for 5 h. The extraction efficiency and blanks were compared and it was proved that the digestion method using only HNO₃–HF extracted most of the metals and gave the lowest blanks. The HNO₃–HF mixture was selected for the development of an improved microwave digestion method specific for aerosol-loaded filters. The operating parameters were optimized, so that quantitative recovery of the reference materials NIST 1649a urban dust and NIST 1648 urban particulate matter was achieved. The blank of cellulose and teflon filters were also determined and compared. Teflon filters present the lowest blanks for all the elements. The obtained limits of detection for each type of filters were adequate for environmental monitoring purposes. ETAAS instrumental operation was also optimized for the compensation and the elimination of interferences. The temperature optimization was performed for each metal in every type of filter and optimized parameters are proposed for 10 elements.     

A new chelating sorbent for metal ion extraction under high saline conditions

A new chelating polymeric sorbent was developed by functionalizing Amberlite XAD-16 with 1,3-dimethyl-3-aminopropan-1-ol via a simple condensation mechanism. The newly developed chelating matrix offered a high resin capacity and faster sorption kinetics for the metal ions such as Mn(II), Pb(II), Ni(II), Co(II), Cu(II), Cd(II) and Zn(II). Various physio-chemical parameters like pH-effect, kinetics, eluant volume and flow rate, sample breakthrough volume, matrix interference effect on the metal ion sorption have been studied. The optimum pH range for the sorption of the above mentioned metal ions were 6.0–7.5, 6.0–7.0, 8.0–8.5, 7.0–7.5, 6.5–7.5, 7.5–8.5 and 6.5–7.0, respectively. The resin capacities for Mn(II), Pb(II), Ni(II), Co(II), Cu(II), Cd(II) and Zn(II) were found to be 0.62, 0.23, 0.55, 0.27, 0.46, 0.21 and 0.25 mmol g⁻¹ of the resin, respectively. The lower limit of detection was 10 ng ml⁻¹ for Cd(II), 40 ng ml⁻¹ for Mn(II) and Zn(II), 32 ng ml⁻¹ for Ni(II), 25 ng ml⁻¹ for Cu(II) and Co(II) and 20 ng ml⁻¹ for Pb(II). A high preconcentration value of 300 in the case of Mn(II), Co(II), Ni(II), Cu(II),Cd(II) and a value of 500 and 250 for Pb(II) and Zn(II), respectively, were achieved. A recovery of >98% was obtained for all the metal ions with 4 M HCl as eluting agent except in the case of Cu(II) where in 6 M HCl was necessary. The chelating polymer showed low sorption behavior to alkali and alkaline earth metals and also to various inorganic anionic species present in saline matrix. The method was applied for metal ion determination from water samples like seawater, well water and tap water and also from green leafy vegetable, from certified multivitamin tablets and steel samples.     

Pyrocatechol Violet immobilized Amberlite XAD-2: synthesis and metal-ion uptake properties suitable for analytical applications

Amberlite XAD-2 has been functionalized by coupling it, through the ---N=N--- group, with Pyrocatechol Violet (PV), and the resulting resin has been characterized by elemental analysis, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and IR spectra. The resin has been used for preconcentrating Zn(II), Cd(II), Pb(II) and Ni(II) ions prior to their determination by flame atomic absorption spectrometry. The optimum pH values for quantitative sorption are 5, 5–7, 4, and 3 for Zn, Cd, Pb and Ni, respectively. The four metals can be desorbed (recovery ˜98%) with 4 M HNO₃; also, 4 M HCl is equally suitable except for Zn. The sorption capacity of the resin is 1410, 1270, 620 and 1360 μg g⁻¹ resin for Zn, Cd, Ni and Pb, respectively. The effect of F⁻, Cl⁻, NO₃⁻, SO₄²⁻ and PO₄³⁻ on the sorption of these four metal ions has been investigated. They are tolerable in the range 0.01–0.20 M, for Pb. In the sorption of Zn(II) and Ni(II), the tolerance limits of all these ions are upto 0.01 M, whereas for Cd(II), F⁻, NO₃⁻, and PO₄³⁻ have been found to be tolerable upto 0.50, 0.10 and 0.10 M, respectively. The preconcentration factors are 60, 50, 23 and 18 for Zn, Cd, Pb and Ni, respectively. Simultaneous collection and determination of the four metals are possible. Cations commonly present in drinking water do not affect the sorption of either metal ion if present at a concentration level similar to that of water. The method has been applied to determine Zn, Ni and Pb content of well-water samples (RSD ≤9%).     

Indirect ultraviolet determination of silver with nickelocyanide ion by flow injection analysis

A flow-injection method for the ultraviolet spectrophotometric determination of silver, based on its reaction with nickelocyanide ion, Ni(CN)²⁻₄, in ammoniacal buffer medium (pH 10) and subsequent measurement of the decrease in the absorption of the Ni(CN)²⁻₄ complex at 275 nm is described. The calibration graph is linear in the range 10–400 μm silver. At a sampling rate of about 60 samples h⁻¹ with 35 μl sample injections, precision was about 1% relative standard deviation. The proposed method was successfully applied to the determination of silver in some common silver minerals.     

Chromium speciation in natural waters using serially connected supported liquid membranes

A supported liquid membrane (SLM) method for the speciation of chromium has been developed. The method is based on selective extraction and enrichment of anionic Cr(VI) and cationic Cr(III) species in two serially connected SLM units. Methyltricaprylammonium chloride (Aliquat) and di-(2-ethylhexyl) phosphoric acid (DEHPA), respectively were used as the selective extractants in the membrane liquid. Graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry (GFAAS) was utilised for final determination. Optimised conditions for the DEHPA membrane were, sample solution at pH 3, acceptor solution 0.1 M HNO₃ and 10% w/w carrier in kerosene. The corresponding values for the Aliquat membrane were pH 7, 0.75 M HNO₃ and 6% w/w carrier in di-n-hexylether. This gave extraction efficiencies for Cr(III) and Cr(VI) of 90 and 40%, respectively. The method was used to measure the concentration of Cr III and Cr VI in surface water from an abandoned tannery site. Storage experiments at different pH showed that preservation at neutral pH gave almost constant values over a period of one month. At acidic pH (pH=3.0) the concentration of Cr(VI) decreased rapidly while the concentration of Cr(III) increased. The detection limit, expressed as three times the standard deviation of enriched blank samples was 0.01 μg l⁻¹.     

Chromium speciation using activated alumina microcolumns and sequential injection analysis-flame atomic absorption spectrometry

A new procedure has been developed for chromium speciation in water by sequential injection analysis and flame atomic absorption spectrometry. The method involves the online retention of Cr(VI) anionic species and Cr(III) cationic species on alumina microcolumns, prepared by packing activated alumina in polytetrafluoroethylene tubes, followed by selective elution of Cr(VI) with 2 mol l⁻¹ NH₄OH and of Cr(III) with 0.2 mol l⁻¹ HNO₃. Studies were carried out on the effect of retention and elution conditions for both Cr species. The limit of detection values, established as the concentration corresponding to three times the standard deviation of blank measurements divided by the slope of the calibration line, achieved were 42 μg l⁻¹ for Cr(VI) and 81 μg l⁻¹ for Cr(III). The relative standard deviation of three independent determination of natural spiked samples were lower than 10% for concentration levels between 0.5 and 2 mg l⁻¹ of Cr. The developed procedure was applied to the analysis of two effluent sewage waters, and results obtained compared well with those obtained by a batch procedure. Recovery studies on natural spiked samples provided results between 93 and 103% for Cr(VI) and from 100 to 106% for Cr(III) for samples spiked with single species. For samples spiked with both Cr(VI) and Cr(III), the average recoveries varied from 86 to 101% for Cr(VI) and from 91 to 117% for Cr(III).     

Extraction with 8-quinolinol and mixed anionic additives using ultrasonic irradiation for the catalytic determination of vanadium in freshwaters

Solvent extraction with 8-quinolinol (QN) has been markedly improved by the combined application of ultrasonic irradiation and mixed additives and used for the catalytic determination of vanadium with chlorpromazine in the presence of tartrate. Vanadium in an acidified sample up to 200 ml is extracted twice at pH 3.9–4.3 into two 10-ml portions of CHCl₃ with 0.14 M QN, and then back-extracted at pH 11 into 10 ml of 0.01 M NaOH solution. Each extraction time is 10 min. In the back-extraction, recovery of vanadium over 95% was performed by the addition of a mixed solution of KBr, NaBrO₃ and HNO₃ to the sample and the application of ultrasonic irradiation for 10 (or 5) min. On the other hand, a conventional mechanical shaking without the mixed solution required 60 min for 91% recovery. The proposed method was able to separate vanadium from Ca(II), Mg(II), Al(III), Fe(III), Cu(II), Cr(VI) and NO⁻₂, and has been successfully applied to the determination of vanadium in river and tap waters. The detection limit of vanadium was about 0.03 μg l⁻¹.     

Rapid dissolution of metal in aqueous media using a modified commercial spark source unit

In this preliminary study the feasibility of a modified spark source was investigated as a method of rapidly dissolving solid conductive samples in aqueous media prior to analysis by atomic spectroscopy. The spark source, originally designed for spark emission spectroscopy in air, was modified by the installation of a spark ablation vessel. This spark ablation vessel was designed for spark ablating samples in aqueous solution, such as deionised water. Samples such as mild steel and brass were ablated in 5–10 ml of deionised water for 2–30 s producing a colloidal suspension. The suspension was readily dissolved by adding 100 μl of concentrated HCl or HNO₃. In this paper the spark ablation vessel is described as well as some of the properties of spark ablation in aqueous solutions. Spark ablation rates on mild steel were measured with respect to spark ablation parameters such as applied current (power), polarity and spark time. Using mild steel as a test sample, spark ablation rates varied from 40 μg s⁻¹, with 2.5 A of applied current, to 70 μg s⁻¹ with 10 A of applied current to the electrodes. The feasibility of using this technique for analysing trace levels (μg g⁻¹) of elements in solid samples was also demonstrated for elements such as Ni in brass with inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Quantification of selected elements (Cr, Ni, Mn and Cu) in a certified alloy (SRM 663) and a non-certified stainless steel showed good agreement between the measured values using spark ablation and the accepted values.     

Direct ICP-MS determination of trace and ultratrace elements in geological materials after decomposition in a microwave oven. Part II. Quantitation of Ba, Cs, Ga, Hf, In, Mo, Nb, Pb, Rb, Sn, Sr, Ta and Tl

A new method has been developed for the rapid determination of traces of Ba, Cs, Ga, Hf, In, Mo, Nb, Pb, Rb, Sn, Sr, Ta and Tl in silicate rocks and lake, stream and river sediments. The method involved dissolution of samples in a microwave oven by heating in a pressure decomposition Teflon vessel with a mixture of HF + HNO₃ + HCl + H₃BO₃ + EDTA followed by direct multielement determination using inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP/MS). The method is faster than conventional dissolution of samples by open vessel acid digestion and fusion and determination by instrumental methods. The accuracy and precision of the developed method were tested by replicate analyses of a number of international geochemical reference samples of established trace element contents. Satisfactory correlation with the “recommended” or “consensus” values was found and recoveries were in most cases 95–100%. New values for Ga, In, Nb and Tl in several international geochemical reference materials are first reported in this paper.     

Determination of selenium, zinc and cadmium in antidandruff shampoos by atomic spectrometry after microwave assisted sample digestion

Microwave assisted pre-treatments for atomic spectrometric determination (inductive coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometry, ICP-OES or flame atomic absorption spectrometry, FAAS) of metallic elements, usually present in antidandruff shampoos, are proposed. They are based on the digestion of the sample with HNO₃ into a closed reactor, which is irradiated at 800 W for a few minutes. Selenium was determined by ICP-OES. The limit of detection was 0.11 mg l⁻¹; the relative standard deviation (R.S.D.) for the selenium content in the samples was in the 0.6–3.6% range. The results obtained were in agreement with the label contents and the recovery of the proposed method was in the 100–106% range. Zinc and cadmium were determined by FAAS. The limit of detection for zinc determination was 0.078 mg l⁻¹; the R.S.D. for zinc contents was in the 0.8–8.6% range. A limit of detection of 0.09 mg l⁻¹ was obtained for cadmium determination; the R.S.D. for cadmium contents was in the 0.7–2.7% range. The determinations were performed after two different sample mineralization pre-treatments — dry ashing (in an electric furnace) and wet mineralization (in a microwave oven). Both methodologies provided comparable results for zinc and cadmium determination in shampoos. The proposed microwave assisted digestion procedures allow a precise and accurate determination of selenium, zinc and cadmium in commercial antidandruff shampoos, and the sample pre-treatment is less time-consuming than the classic methods.