Automatic coulometric titration of acids

An apparatus is described for the automatic titration of acids by the constant current coulometric technique. The generator electrodes comprise a platinum cathode and a silver/silver bromide anode. The increase in pH resulting from the reduction of hydrogen ion at the cathode is indicated by a glass electrode, in conjunction with a Beckman Automatic Titrator which automatically monitors the titration and interrupts the generating current when the equivalence point pH is reached. Quantities of hydrochloric acid in the neighborhood of 0.12 millimole in 50 ml were titrated with a mean error of ^-0.07% and an average deviation from the mean of ±0.15%. The technique is applicable to any strong or weak acid, and to acid mixtures, provided that no substance is present which is either reducible at the platinum cathode or reactive in any way at the silver anode.     

Autoprotolysis constants by coulometric titration

A procedure is described for the evaluation of autoprotolysis constants in which a strong acid is titrated with coulometrically generated strong base. A two-compartment cell is used, and the acid may be added as such to the solvent under study, or generated in situ in the cell. When a silver auxiliary electrode can be used, as with solutions containing bromide ion, a single-compartment cell may be used, which seems to give more accurate results because it avoids the errors caused by diffusion of solution through the diaphragm. The results for the constants obtained for ethylene glycol, for methanol and for water are in reasonable agreement with values in the literature.     

Potentiometric titration of plutonium

In the potentiometric titration of plutonium(III), it has been customary to take the equivalence point as the inflection point on a plot of potential vs. volume of titrant.¹ That the stoichiometric end point corresponds to the inflection point does not seem to have been theoretically demonstrated, however. The purpose of this letter is to suggest that these points may not correspond in the potentiometric titration of plutonium(III). Mound Laboratory is operated by Monsanto Research Corporation for USERDA under contract No. EY-76-C-04-0053.     

Monoorganomercury and diorganothallium derivatives of 2-thiobarbituric acid

Compounds of type R_nMH₂Tb (R = Me, Ph; n = 1 (M = Hg), 2 (M = Tl), H₃Tb = 2-thiobarbituric acid) have been prepared, and studied by vibrational (IR and Raman) and NMR (¹H, ¹³C, ¹⁹⁹Hg and ²⁰⁵Tl) spectroscopy. The organomercury derivatives have the metal bound to the deprotonated thiol sulphur atom of the ligand in both the solid state and in DMSO solution. The organothallium compounds, however, while having the metal bound to the sulphur atom and possibly to one of the nitrogen atoms of the ligand pyrimidine ring in the solid state, in DMSO form conducting solutions containing H₂Tb⁻ and R₂Tl⁺ ions.     

Investigation on drying conditions and assays of amidosulfuric acid and sodium carbonate by acidimetric coulometric titration and gravimetric titration

Amidosulfuric acid and sodium carbonate as standards for acid–base titrimetry were assayed by coulometric titration and gravimetric titration. Amidosulfuric acid was directly assayed by coulometric titration with electrogenerated hydroxide ions, and sodium carbonate was assayed by gravimetric back-titration. For sodium carbonate, excess amount of sulfuric acid, whose concentration was determined by coulometric titration, was added to sodium carbonate, and then gravimetrically back-titrated using a sodium hydroxide solution whose concentration was determined by gravimetric titration using the sulfuric acid. The accuracy of the coulometric titration for amidosulfuric acid and sulfuric acid was evaluated by examining the current efficiency of pulse electrolysis, the amount of the electrolysis current used, and the time spent for a titration. In addition, the drying conditions for high purity primary standards have a significant effect on the titration results due to changes in the acid–base assay. The suitable drying conditions for amidosulfuric acid and sodium carbonate were evaluated by mass-change measurements, coulometric titration and gravimetric titration. The measurement uncertainties were estimated from the uncertainties on the titration processes. Finally, the assays of amidosulfuric acid and sodium carbonate were 99.986% ± 0.010% (k = 2) after drying at 50 °C for 2 h, and 99.970% ± 0.016% (k = 2) after drying at 280 °C for 4 h, respectively. In addition, the international consistency was confirmed by measuring certified reference materials (CRMs) available from different National Metrology Institutes, and the compatibility of values among CRMs was experimentally ascertained.     

Determination of total free acid in formaldehyde by coulometric catalytic thermometric titration

Coulometric catalytic thermometric titration of the total free acid (HCOOH) in formaldehyde of various manufacturers was successfully performed. The indicator reaction was the exothermic polymerization of formaldehyde in the presence of ethanol, catalyzed by strong base. In the titrations, a cathodically polarized platinum generator electrode was employed. The content of free acid in various formaldehyde samples ranged between 0.018 and 0.044 %, and was determined with a standard deviation less than 1.5%. Good agreement was obtained with the results of coulometric photometric and volumetric titrations.     

Potentiometric titration of p-Aminobenzoic acid and α-naphthylamine with NaNO2 solution in presence of HCl

Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry - p-Aminobenzoic acid and α-Naphthylamine have been determined potentiometrically in presence of HCl against a standard solution of NaNO2 using bright...     

Potentiometric titration of lignosulfonic acids

The conditions of potentiometric titration of lignosulfonic acids allowing quantitative determination of strongly and weakly acidic functional groups in lignosulfonates were determined.     

Potentiometric titration of diprotic systems

 The approximate nature of Gran’s method of linearization of potentiometric titration curves applied to diprotic systems has been thoroughly investigated. A function involving pH and titrant volume V (which is linearly dependent on V and becomes zero at the first equivalent point of titration of a weak diprotic base with a strong monoprotic acid) has been critically examined and validated by means of widely extended simulated experiments. Accurate experimental confirmation of the theoretical expressions has been obtained by performing many real titrations of the primary standard Na₂CO₃ with HCl. This particular application, analytically significant itself, can be a prototype of analogous applications. Received: 25 March 1996/Revised: 15 November 1996/Accepted: 19 November 1996     

Potentiometric titration of diprotic systems

 The approximate nature of Gran’s method of linearization of potentiometric titration curves applied to diprotic systems has been thoroughly investigated. A function involving pH and titrant volume V (which is linearly dependent on V and becomes zero at the first equivalent point of titration of a weak diprotic base with a strong monoprotic acid) has been critically examined and validated by means of widely extended simulated experiments. Accurate experimental confirmation of the theoretical expressions has been obtained by performing many real titrations of the primary standard Na₂CO₃ with HCl. This particular application, analytically significant itself, can be a prototype of analogous applications. Received: 25 March 1996/Revised: 15 November 1996/Accepted: 19 November 1996     

Determination of protonation constants by coulometric titration

Application of coulometric titration to the determination of the protonation constants of acids and bases offers several advantages because of its simplicity, precision and accuracy. This procedure is rapid and requires only one calibration solution of strong acid in the same solvent and at the same ionic strength as the solution of acid (or base) being investigated. The procedure seems to be especially advantageous in the case of non-aqueous or mixed solvents having amphiprotic character. The validity of the method has been checked with several substances in water, 95% ethanol and ethylene glycol.     

Bromine number determination by coulometric flow-injection titration

The bromine number, the number of grams of bromine which react with 100 grams of a substance under given conditions, is a widely used parameter in the chemical and petroleum industries. A method of performing the bromine number determination by coulometric flow-injection titration, using both sequential injection with sinusoidal flow and single zone techniques, is described. Titrations of olefins, known interfering compounds, and petroleum distillates were performed and compared with the results of conventional bromine number titrations. Analyses yielded a relative standard deviation of 2%. Results compared favorably with those obtained by the conventional method for both pure (97%) olefins and petroleum distillates. The method was found to be insensitive to interference from nitrogen compounds. The CFIT technique combines the advantages of coulometric titrations: controlled generation of reagent, avoidance of reagent standardization requirements and reagent storage and stability problems; with the advantages of FIA: small volume requirements which reduce cost and waste, controllable dilution through flow programming, toxic materials contained within a closed environment, and the capability of being automated.     

The coulometric titration of bromate with cuprous copper

A coulometric procedure has been developed by which 18 to 240 μg quantities of bromate may be determined to within 0.3 μg. The bromate is allowed to react with bromide in an acid solution and electrolytically generated cuprous copper is used for the titration. A dual platinum electrode indicator system is used in an amperometric end-point procedure     

Mass-spectrometric study of 2- and 4-thiobarbituric acid derivatives

The mass spectra of 2- and 4-thiobarbituric acids and some of their close analogs at ionizing voltages of 70 and 14 eV are compared. Qualitative and quantitative differences in the behavior of these compounds under the influence of electron impact were established. It is shown that the position of the thione group in the ring and the tautomeric transformations have a substantial effect on the character of the fragmentation of the investigated compounds. The established fragmentation principles make it possible to distinguish the structural isomers in a series of 2- and 4-thiobarbituric acids from their mass spectra.Translated from Khimiya Geterotsiklicheskikh Soedinenii, No. 4, pp. 529–535, April, 1976.     

Thermodynamic study of lithium-vanadium bronzes by coulometric titration

Thermodynamic study has been made of lithium-vanadium bronzes β-Li_xV₂O_5?y in reversible cells with a lithium-conducting solid electrolyte using coulometric titration. The linear dependence of $\text{Δ}\text{G}{}_{\mathrm{<mtext>Li</mtext>}}$ in the bronze on parameters x and T was found. It is concluded that the dependence of $\text{Δ}\text{G}{}_{\mathrm{<mtext>Li</mtext>}}$ on the P_O2 value is weak. The limits of the homogeneity region of β-Li_xV₂O_5?y have been more clearly defined.     

The coulometric titration of acids and bases in dimethylsulfoxide media

The coulometric titration of 20–200 μeq of acids and bases in DMSO media is described. In the titration of bases, the electro-oxidation of hydrogen at a platinized platinum electrode is used as the source of protons. The conditions for 100 % current efficiency at this electrode are low current density to avoid passivity and regular treatment of the electrode with potassium dichromate—sulfuric acid to remove a poisoning sulfide layer. The accuracy of the titrations is better than ±1 %. Very weak acids like phenols (pK_a (DMSO) ≈16) can be titrated successfully. Tris(hydroxymethyl)aminomethane is the weakest base titrated.     

Further developments in the high-precision coulometric titration of uranium

An experimental study of the current efficiency in the coulometric generation of Ti(III), as a function of electrolyte composition, current density and electrode material, has been performed. The cathodes investigated include platinum, mercury and graphite. The first two are suitable for high-precision determination of uranium. The graphite surface is readily poisoned, rendering it useless for high-accuracy work. The use of mercury requires thorough removal of chloride from the system. The precision and error obtained are comparable for both the mercury and platinum cathodes, and are of the order of 50 ppm.     

Evaluation of certified reference materials for oxidation-reduction titration by precise coulometric titration and volumetric analysis

The accuracy and uncertainty of coulometric titration of Japanese certified reference materials (CRMs) for oxidation-reduction titration were examined in this study. The results for potassium dichromate, sodium oxalate, and potassium iodate are presented. Potassium dichromate was directly determined by coulometric titration, and sodium oxalate and potassium iodate were determined by volumetric analysis using potassium dichromate assigned by coulometry.The uncertainty of the method was investigated by examining the dependency on the sample size and on the electrolysis current. Changes in the titration parameters did not result in any significant effects on the titration results. The coulometric system used primarily consists of a constant current source, timer, switching circuit, indicator unit, and voltmeter. They were controlled using the coulometry software by a PC/AT compatible computer. A highly automated coulometric system achieves repeatabilities of less than one part in 30,000 (k = 2) and uncertainties of less than one part in 15,000 (k = 2). In addition, using volumetric method, SI units traceable sodium oxalate and potassium iodate (purity standards for redox reaction) CRMs were developed.Reference materials for volumetric analysis are the most basic substances used in analytical chemistry. These materials are analyzed by several analytical methods and are produced globally; however, their purities have not been compared at the international level. Therefore, the relationship between the purity and reliability of these materials has not yet been established. In this paper, we determine the relationship between these parameters by titrating each material obtained from different laboratories.