The determination of molybdenum and tungsten in sea and surface water

A simple method for the determination of molybdenum and tungsten in sea and surface water is presented. Molybdenum and tungsten are concentrated on activated charcoal by adsorption as the ammonium pyrrolidine dithiocarbamate complex; the optimal pH for adsorption is 1.3. Mo and W are then determined by thermal neutron activation, forming ⁹⁹Mo (T_{$\text{1}\text{2}$} = 66.7 h) and ¹³⁷W (T_{$\text{1}\text{2}$} = 23.8 h), respectively. The ^99mTc daughter of ⁹⁹Mo is measured as soon as the equilibrium between ^99mTc(T_{$\text{1}\text{2}$}= 6 h) and ⁹⁹Mo is established. The detection limits are 0.05 μg Mo l^-1 and 0.05 μg W l^-1 (or 0.001 μg W l^-1 after a simple chemical separation).