Speciation analysis of aluminium(III) in natural waters and biological fluids by complexing with various catechols followed by differential pulse voltammetry detection

The biological effects of aluminium have received much attention in recent years. Speciation of Al is of basic relevance as it concerns its reactivity and bioavailability. A differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) procedure is proposed for speciation analysis of Al(III) in natural waters and biological fluids using six catechols (L-dopa, dopamine, epinephrine, norepinephrine, caffeic acid and o-benzenediol) as electroactive ligands. The decrease of the DPV anodic peak current for each catechol ligand is linear with the increase of Al concentration. This speciation analysis idea is based on the measurement of the complexation capacity, namely, different affinities of Al(III) for catechols and organic ligands under two pH conditions. The labile monomeric Al fraction (mainly inorganic aluminium) is determined at pH 4.6, while the total monomeric Al fraction is determined at pH 8.5. The principle for Al(III) speciation analysis by an electrochemical method is discussed. This sensitive and simple fractionation method is successfully applied to the speciation analysis of Al in natural waters and the results agree well with those of Driscoll's method. The speciation analysis of Al in biological fluids is also explored and the results are compared with those obtained by ultrafiltration and dialysis. Compared with other speciation protocols the electrochemical method possesses some remarkable advantages: rapidity, high sensitivity, cheap instrumentation and a simple operation procedure.     

Fractionation of aluminum in natural waters by fluorometry based on the competitive complexation

A novel strategy for the speciation of aluminum has been developed by fluorometry using selective analytical reagents under different pH conditions, which is based on the measurement of the complexation ability of Al for analytical reagents and native organic matters. With Eriochrome Blue Black R, labile monomeric Al and total monomeric Al fractions are determined at pH 4.5 and pH 8.0, respectively. With morin only the labile monomeric Al is determined at pH 4.0, while with 8-hydroxyquinoline the total monomeric Al is determined at pH 5.5. So, acid soluble Al fraction is obtained indirectly. This method is successfully applied to the fractionation of Al in natural waters. The results well agree with those obtained by Driscoll’s 8-hydroxyquinoline/cation-exchange protocol. This fluorometric method possesses some advantages such as high sensitivity, easy manipulation, no separation step and less time-consuming.     

Direct Determination of Labile Monomeric Aluminum in Natural Waters By A.C. Oscillopolarography in the Presence of Rubeanic Acid

ABSTRACT

A simple and sensitive electrochemical method for the direct determination of labile (monomeric inorganic Al speciation) Al concentration in natural waters is developed in this paper. It is based on the use of a.c. oscillopolarography in the presence of rubeanic acid (RA). The optimal experimental conditions are: 1 mol/L NaAc-HAc buffer (pH 5.4) and a RA concentration of 6x10^?4 mol/L. The response is linear over the 2x10^?7 to 2x10^?6 mol/L concentration range. The detection limit is 1x10^?7 mol/L and the relative standard deviation (at the 1.2 x 10^?6 mol/L level) is 5.5%. The method has been applied to the direct determination of labile monomeric Al concentrations in various natural samples. The results were verified by the classic ion exchange method.     

铬蓝黑R-示波计时电位法快速测定天然水中不同形态的铝浓度

本文报道铬蓝黑 R-示波计时电位法快速测定天然水中不同形态的铝。在 0 .5mol/L 乙酸 -乙酸铵 - 1× 1 0 - 3mol/L铬蓝黑 R( p H4.6)底液中 ,铝 -铬蓝黑 R铬合物在 - 0 .80 V电位处产生灵敏切口 ,切口深度与铝浓度成正比 ,线性范围为 8× 1 0 - 7～6× 1 0 - 5mol/L,检测下限为 6× 1 0 - 7mol/L,相对标准偏差为 4.8% ( n=1 0 ,4× 1 0 - 5mol/L Al)。应用该法测定了天然水中不同形态的铝浓度 ,并同 Driscoll的 MIBK-GF/AAS法进行了比较 ,结果基本一致     

Colorimetric determination of aluminium(III) with chrome azurol S and the reactivity of hydrolysed aluminium species

The metallochromic reagent chrome azurol S, when used in hexamine buffer at pH 4.9, reacts rapidly with monomeric and small polymeric forms of aluminium(III) in aged hydrolysed solutions. It is unreactive toward the polymer Al₁₃(OH)⁷⁺₃₂ and colloidal Al(OH)₃ and the hydroxyaluminosilicates, imogolite and allophane. The reagent is appropriate for rapid semi-quantitative analysis of labile aluminium in acid lake waters or acid soils.     

Resonance Rayleigh scattering determination of trace amounts of Al in natural waters and biological samples based on the formation of an Al(III)-morin-surfactant complex

A novel method for the determination of trace amounts of Al(III) based on resonance Rayleigh scattering (RRS) has been developed. In the presence of some surfactants, Al(III) can react with morin and form an Al(III)-morin-surfactant complex, which results in the enhancement of RRS intensity and the appearance of the corresponding RRS spectral characteristics. Their maximum scatter peaks are at 476 nm for the cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) system, 489 nm for the cetylpyridinium chloride (CPC) system, 474 nm for the Triton X-100 system, and 473 nm for the Tween-20 system. The enhanced RRS intensity is directly proportional to the concentration of Al(III). The detection limits are in the range of (0.50-1.2)×10⁻⁷ mol l⁻¹ depending on the surfactant. The characteristics of RRS spectra of the complexes, the optimum conditions of these reactions and the influencing factors have been investigated. The method has high selectivity, and was successfully applied to the determination of Al(III) in natural and biological samples. Furthermore, according to different complexation capacity of Al(III)-morin-CTAB system under two pH conditions, speciation analysis of Al(III) in natural waters was explored. The labile monomeric Al fraction (mainly inorganic Al, Al_i) is determined at acidic pH and the total monomeric Al fraction (Al_a) is determined at alkaline pH. The results are in agreement with those obtained by Driscoll’s 8-hydroxyquinoline extraction-ion exchange method.     

邻苯二酚紫-示波计时电位法测定天然水中不同形态铝

报道邻苯二酚紫-示波计时电位法分别在酸性和碱性条件下直接检测天然水中的无机单核铝和总单核铝浓度。并用该法测定了水样中的总铝,有机单核铝和酸溶态铝,从而实现了天然水中5种Al形态的电化学测定。测定了20多个实际水样,与Driscoll方法进行了对照,结果基本一致。     

Kinetics of silicate exchange in alkaline aluminosilicate solutions

In strongly alkaline aqueous KOH solutions containing SiIV in large excess over AlIII, the kinetics of exchange of monomeric silicate with small acyclic aluminosilicate solute species is much more rapid than with either cyclic aluminosilicates or any all-silicate anions. Selective inversion recovery 29Si NMR studies of homogeneous solutions of stoichiometric composition 3.0 mol kg-1 of SiO2, 0.1 mol kg-1 of Al2O3, and 8.0 mol kg-1 of K2O in 60-75% D2O gave rate constants of 2.0 +/- 0.2 kg mol-1 s-1 and 17 +/- 4 s-1 for the forward and reverse reactions of monomeric silicate with (HO)3AlOSiOn(OH)(3-n)(n+1)- (n = 2 or 3) at 0 degree C. These rate constants are more than 10(4)-fold faster than those extrapolated from 60 to 90 degrees C for comparable reactions of silicate anions. The greater lability of acyclic aluminate centers relative to silicate is ascribed partly to the availability of HO- groups for condensation reactions on Al and mainly to the ease of expansion of the coordination number of AlIII beyond 4. The latter attribute is diminished when AlIII is constrained to be tetrahedral in cyclic structures. With respect to the mechanism of formation of zeolites from alkaline aqueous media, it is suggested that small, labile AlOSi units add rapidly to growing zeolitic structures "on demand", whereas the more kinetically inert cage or ring structures cannot. This would explain why a silicate or aluminosilicate structure that is dominant among solute species at equilibrium in the presence of a particular cation may bear little or no geometric relation to the zeolitic framework promoted kinetically by that same cation.     

Morin applied in speciation of aluminium in natural waters and biological samples by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection

A reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatographic method with fluorescence detection for the determination of labile monomeric aluminium has been developed through pre-column complexation using morin as the analytical reagent. The highly fluorescent aluminium-morin complex (excitation wavelength 418 nm, emission wavelength 490 nm) was separated on a Spherisorb ODS 2 column with an eluent consisting of 30% methanol and 70% water (pH 1.0 with perchloric acid). The most remarkable point of this protocol was that only the most toxic aluminium species, that is, free aqua-aluminium ion and its monomeric hydroxo complex ions, selectively respond among various aluminium complexes. This strategy has been successfully applied to direct fractionation of the toxic aluminium in natural waters and biological samples without any pretreatment.     

Novel bimodal porous N-(2-aminoethyl)-3-aminopropyltrimethoxysilane-silica monolithic capillary microextraction and its application to the fractionation of aluminum in rainwater and fruit juice by electrothermal vaporization inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry

A novel bimodal porous N-(2-aminoethyl)-3-aminopropyltrimethoxysilane (AAPTS)-silica monolithic capillary was prepared by sol–gel technology, and used as capillary microextraction (CME) column for aluminum fractionation by electrothermal vaporization inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ETV)–ICP–MS with the use of polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) slurry as fluorinating agent. The extraction behaviors of different Al species were studied and it was found that in the pH range of 4–7, labile monomeric Al (free Al³⁺, Al–OH and Al–F) could be retained quantitatively on the monolithic capillary, while non-labile monomeric Al (Al–Cit and Al–EDTA) passed through the capillary directly. The labile monomeric Al retained on monolithic capillary was eluted with 10 μL 1 mol L^− 1 HCl and the elution was introduced into the ETV for fluorination assisted ETV–ICP–MS determination. The total monomeric Al fraction was also determined by AAPTS-silica monolithic CME–fluorination-assisted electrothermal vaporization (FETV)–ICP–MS after the sample solution was adjusted to pH 8.8. Non-labile monomeric Al was obtained by subtracting labile monomeric Al from the total monomeric Al. Under the optimized conditions, the relative standard deviation (R.S.D) was 6.2% (C = 1 μg L^− 1, n = 7; sample volume, 5 mL), and the limit of detection was 1.6 ng L^− 1 for Al with an enrichment factor of 436 fold and a sampling frequency of 9 h^− 1. The prepared AAPTS-silica monolithic capillary showed an excellent pH tolerance and solvent stability and could be used for more than 250 times without decreasing adsorption efficiency. The developed method was applied to the fraction of Al in rainwater and fruit juice, and the results demonstrated that the established system had advantages over the existing 8-hydroxyquinoline (8-HQ) chelating system for Al fractionation such as wider pH range, higher tolerance of interference and better regeneration.     

The thermodynamic model of inorganic arsenic species in aqueous solutions Potentiometric study of the hydrolitic equilibrium of arsenic acid

Protonation constants of arsenic acid were determined at different ionic strengths in NaClO(4) (0.1, 0.5, 1.0, 3.0 mol dm(-3)), NaCl (0.5 and 1.0 mol dm(-3)) and KCl (0.5, 1.0 and 3.0 mol dm(-3)) ionic media by means of a potentiometric study. The distribution of arsenate species was defined depending on two important variables in natural environments: pH and composition. All the experimentation was performed at 25 degrees C. The differences found in the protonation constants for different medium compositions, were explained by the different behaviour of the interaction parameters of the species considered in the different media and ionic strengths. These parameters were reported for all hydrolitic As(V) species and were calculated using the Modified Bromley's Methodology (MBM). The corresponding thermodynamic stepwise formation constants were also determined (log degrees K(1)=11.58+/-0.01, log degrees K(2)=7.06+/-0.01, log degrees K(3)=2.25+/-0.01). All the results obtained showed not only the importance of the ionic strength but also of the composition of the ionic medium on the distribution of the acid-base species of As(V) as a function of pH in natural waters.     

Kinetic study of uranium speciation in model solutions and in natural waters using Competitive Ligand Exchange Method

Kinetic speciation of uranium in model solutions containing uranium and humic acid (HA) and in natural waters has been investigated by Competitive Ligand Exchange Method (CLEM). In alkaline freshwaters, most of uranium species were uranium-carbonate species, which were labile in the CLEM experiment. The uranium speciation of every sample was characterized either as “labile” or “non-labile” uranium complexes depending on the dissociation rate coefficients of the complexes. The results showed that as the U(VI)/HA ratio was decreased, the dissociation rate coefficients decreased and the labile fraction decreased as well. When the U(VI)/HA ratio was 0.1, the labile fraction of the U(VI)-HA increased with increasing pH; however, there was no pH effect on the dissociation of U(VI)-HA complexes at lower U(VI)/HA ratios. Chelex-100 had some limitations in its use for the study of dissociation of U(VI)-HA complex at very low U(VI)/HA ratios. By developing an analytical method and procedure for quantitative determination of kinetic parameters for the dissociation of uranium-HA complexes in model solutions and natural waters, this work has made a substantial contribution to analytical chemistry.     

Differential pulse voltammetric indirect determination of aluminium in drinking waters, blood, urine, hair, and medicament samples using L-dopa under alkaline conditions

The differential pulse voltammetric (DPV) indirect determination of aluminium using L-dopa under alkaline conditions on a glassy carbon working electrode was studied. The proposed method relies on the linear decrease of the DPV anodic peak current of L-dopa with increase in the concentration of aluminium added. Under the optimum experimental conditions (pH 8.5, 0.08 M NH4Cl-NH3.H2O buffer solution, and 4 x 10(-4) M L-dopa), the linear range is 2-18 x 10(-7) M AlIII. The detection limit is 7.6 x 10(-8) M and the relative standard deviation for 8 x 10(-7) M AlIII is 3.5% (n = 8). A number of foreign species were examined as potential interferents. The method was applied to the determination of aluminium in drinking waters, synthetic renal dialysate, sodium chloride injection, sucrafate, hydrothorax, blood, urine and hair samples. The physiological significance is discussed.     

钙镁试剂-示波计时电位法测定天然水和饮用水中铝含量

本文报道钙镁试剂 ( CLG) -示波计时电位法直接测定天然水和饮用水中的铝含量。在 0 .2 mol/L 乙酸 -乙酸铵 ( p H=6.3)缓冲溶液中 ,加入铝后 ,铝 - CL G配合物切口电位为 - 0 .75V,切口深度在 5× 1 0 - 6～ 5× 1 0 - 5mol/L范围内呈线性关系 ,检测下限为 4× 1 0 - 6 mol/L。在 5× 1 0 - 5mol/L时相对标准偏差为 4.7% ( n=1 0 )。应用该法测定了天然水和饮用水中铝含量 ,并同 ICP/AES法所获结果进行了对照 ,结果基本一致     

酸性媒染紫—示波计时电位法测定天然水不同形态铝

本文报道酸性媒染紫（SVRS）一示波计时电位法测定天然水中不同形态铝。对24个实际水样分别在酸性pH5.2测定了无机单核铝Ali和碱性pH8.8底液中测定总单核铝Ala,有机单核铝Al0-Ala-Alio同时还应用该法测定了酸化水样中总铝AlT,酸溶态铝AlT=AlT-Ala,从而实现了水样中五种形态铝的电化学测定,测定值与Driscoll方法进行了比较对照,结果基本一致。本法特点为：简便快捷,灵敏准确,可以直接测定与铝毒性密切相关的无机单核铝Ali,无需分离步骤,水样用量小,适用于大批量天然水样中Al形态的快速分析。     

Possibilities for speciation of Al-citrate and other negatively charged Al complexes by anion-exchange FPLC-ICP-AES

An anion-exchange fast protein liquid chromatographic-inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometric procedure (FPLC-ICP-AES) was developed for speciation of Al-citrate and other negatively charged Al complexes. FPLC separations were carried out on a Mono Q HR 5/5 strong anion-exchange FPLC column over a pH range from 3.5 to 11.0. An aqueous-NaNO(3) (4 mol dm(-3)) linear gradient elution was applied over 10 min for separation of a particular Al species. The separated Al species were determined in 0.5 cm(3) eluate fractions ;off line' by ICP-AES. Under optimal analytical procedures Al-citrate was separated from Al-oxalate and Al-EDTA in a neutral pH range. Good reproducibility of the FPLC-ICP-AES procedure was obtained for determination of a particular Al species at optimal measurement conditions (RSD +/-2%). Al(3+) and neutral Al-citrate species were strongly adsorbed on the column resin and did not interfere with the separation of negatively charged Al complexes. Al(OH)(4)(-) species were separated from Al-citrate in an alkaline pH region, but quantitatively determined only at a pH of 11.0. The distribution of Al species over a pH range from 3.5 to 11.0 agreed with the reported calculated data. The limit of detection (3sigma basis) for separated Al species was 0.1 mug cm(-3).     

Kinetics of aluminium fluoride complexation in single- and mixed-ligand systems

The complexation reaction between Al(3+) and fluoride was studied over concentration ranges 2-50muM fluoride, 0.5-500muM aluminium, pH 2.5-5.0 at ionic strength 0.1 and temperatures of 298 and 283 K. The initial rate of formation of AlF(2+) was strongly dependent on pH, reaching a minimum at pH 3, and was considerably slower at the lower temperature. Addition of salicylate increased the reaction rate, probably because of the corresponding increase in the initial concentration of AlOH(2+). These effects of pH, temperature and competing ligands will therefore be critical in determining the composition of acid natural water systems and in particular the speciation of soluble aluminium.     

A field aluminium speciation method to study the aluminium hazard in water

The toxicity of aluminium is governed by its bioavailability. Therefore, the speciation of aluminium in drinking water becomes of prime importance to understand its fate and the population exposure, and to develop guidelines for the concentration levels. At Health Canada, a field speciation method has been developed to perform on-site speciation followed by measurement of Al in the laboratory. The following species are generated: 1) total recoverable; 2) total acid-leacheable; 3) total dissolved; 4) dissolved extracted; and 5) dissolved non extracted. The field extractions are performed by percolation through chelation columns, which are later processed in the laboratory. Aluminium determinations can then be performed by numerous methods, such as by Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICPMS), Graphite Furnace Atomic Absorption Spectrometry (GFAAS) or Inductively Coupled Plasma Atomic Emission Spectrometry (ICP-AES). Examples of results for raw or treated/ distributed surface waters, as well as for groundwaters, are used to illustrate the validity of the method, and the importance of considering aluminium speciation in characterizing the aluminium hazard in water.     

Size and charge fractionation of aqueous aluminium in dilute acidic waters: effects of changes in pH and temperature.

In natural waters, aluminium occurs in different physico-chemical forms, depending on pH, temperature and the presence of inorganic and organic ligands. Conventional methods for fractionation of AI species do not fully succeed in separating monomeric, i.e., low relative molecular mass (Mr) AI species, from polymeric colloidal AI species. In the present work, hollow-fibre ultrafiltration and acid digestion steps are introduced prior to the ordinary Barnes-Driscoll procedure. By this method, a colloidal AI fraction is separated from the particulate fraction, i.e., the fraction that is able to precipitate by the force of gravity. Both the monomeric and colloidal AI fractions are characterized according to Mr and the chemical properties such as hydroxyquinoline-isobutyl methyl ketone-extractability and Amberlite IR-120 cation exchangeability. Changes in pH and/or temperature were found to be critical for the analytical results of AI. By combining size and charge fractionation techniques, increased information concerning AI species in dilute freshwaters was obtained. One important investigation is the presence of high Mr AI species in the operationally defined monomeric AI fractions.     

Fe-Al layered double hydroxides in bromate reduction: Synthesis and reactivity

This study presents a rare use of layered double hydroxides of Fe(II) and Al(III) (Fe-Al LDH), as reported for the first time for bromate removal from aqueous solutions. The Fe-Al LDH samples were prepared with Fe/Al molar ratios of 1-4 using a co-precipitation method at pH 7, with subsequent hydrothermal treatment at 120°C. The Fe-Al LDH (molar ratio of Fe/Al=1, 2) with a layered structure exhibited nearly complete removal of bromate from initial concentration of 100μmol/dm(3) at a wide pH range of 4.0-10.5 over a 2h reaction period; the residual bromate concentration in the solution was lower than the detection limit of 0.07μmol/dm(3) (9μg-BrO(3)(-)/dm(3)). During the reaction period, bromide was released into the solution via a reduction process. Reactivity of Fe-Al LDH with a Fe/Al molar ratio of 2 did not decrease the bromate reduction efficiency during 30days.