Spectrophotometric determination of copper with uramyldiacetic acid

A new method for the spectrophotometric determination of copper using uramyldiacetic acid as chromogenic reagent is proposed. The complex is formed in a wide pH range (2.5–9); but in order to avoid the potential conversion of UDA in murexide it is convenient to work at pH < 3: and has a maximum of absorption at 775 nm. Beer's law is obeyed in the interval 20–420 μg of copper(II)/ml. The Ringbom optimal range falls between 70 and 400 μg of copper(II)/ml, with a minimum photometric error of 2.8. The reaction between the metal and the ligand takes place in the ratio 1:1. The method has been applied to the determination of copper in ores with low content of the metal.