Temperature dependence of complex formation constants in aqueous solutions of metal acetates

The equilibrium constants of formation of inner- and outer-sphere cation-anion complexes (ion pairs) in aqueous solutions of different metal acetates in a wide temperature range have been calculated by integrating the density function of distribution of ligands around the cation. The standard Gibbs energies, enthalpies, and entropies of formation of 1: 1 complexes have been calculated. It has been shown that, in all solutions under consideration, contact and solvent-separated ion pairs coexist. A conclusion has been drawn that the temperature dependence of ion association constants is mainly determined by the temperature dependence of the water dielectric constant.     

Detection of metal ions in aqueous solution by voltohmmetry

A new electrochemical detection principle is described for the trace analysis of dissolved species which can be deposited at polycrystalline thin-film metal electrodes and which change the surface resistance of the electrode. Because the latter parameter is measured in dependence on the applied electrode potential this method is called voltohmmetry. The preparation of the required thin-film electrodes and the experimental set-up is introduced and discussed. Typical voltohmmetric experiments are illustrated by measurements of Tl+/Tl at polycrystalline gold electrodes with a thickness of 15 nm. The analytical capabilities of this new approach are discussed. It is already possible to determine heavy metals such as Tl+, Pb2+ or Cd2+ in the range of a few microgram/L by surface resistance-potential measurements at thin-film electrodes with a simple cyclic technique. Further developments of voltohmmetry are envisaged.     

Sorption of heavy metal from aqueous solution by volcanic ash

Lava ash from Mt. Etna volcano has been tested in a series of batch experiments in order to find out its suitability to act as metal ion sorbent from wastewaters. The results show that the removal of Cd, Cu and Cr elements reaches a suitable level. Various experimental parameters have been tried to verify their influence on the metal sorption. Each ionic species in solution can be removed only in its own range of optimal pH. No competitive effects have been found. The equilibrium data are satisfactorily fitted by the Freundlich isotherm. Desorption experiments by acid aqueous solutions result in leaching of negligible amounts of metal ions.     

Complexing sorbents based on dispersed minerals for recovery of heavy metal ions from aqueous solutions

We have obtained sorbents for recovery of heavy metal ions from aqueous solutions by modification of kaolinite and metakaolinite, aluminum oxyhydroxide and aluminum hydroxide by polyphosphates. Using sorption of Ni²⁺, Co²⁺ and Cr³⁺ as an example, we have shown that the sorbents have high sorption capacity and distribution coefficient with respect to heavy metal ions. We have studied the composition of the complexes formed. We have developed methods for granulation of the sorbents with a binder and for regeneration of the sorbents. A. V. Dumanskii Institute of Colloid Chemistry and Chemistry of Water, National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, 42 Bul'var Akademika Vernadskogo, Kiev-142 252680, Ukraine. Translated from Teoreticheskaya i éksperimental'naya Khimiya, Vol. 35, No. 3, pp. 167–170, May–June, 1999.     

Extraction and preconcentration of toxic metal ions from aqueous solution using benzothiazole-based chelating resins

Polystyrene-divinylbenzene resin (PS-DVB) was functionalized with a benzothiazole group. PS-DVB with amino group was initially prepared by nitration and reduction reactions and subsequently treated with ethyl 2-benzothiazolylacetate (BA) to obtain the chelating resin with an amide linkage (BA-PS-DVB). Meanwhile, the amino-PS-DVB was diazotized and coupled with BA to obtain the chelating resin with an azo linkage (azo-BA-PS-DVB). The resins were characterized by elemental analysis and infrared spectroscopy and evaluated for their extraction of Cd(II), Cu(II) and Pb(II) ions in water before their determinations by flame atomic absorption spectrometry (FAAS). Extraction conditions were optimized for batch method such as the pH of the solution, the extraction time and the adsorption isotherm. The optimum pH for the extraction of Cd(II), Cu(II) and Pb(II) are 8.0, 7.0 and 6.0, respectively, while the equilibrium time of all ions was reached within 10-20 min. The adsorption behavior of all the metal ions followed the Langmuir adsorption isotherm. In the column method, the optimum flow rates of metal sorption onto BA-PS-DVB and azo-BA-PS-DVB columns were 2.5 and 4.0 mL min^− 1. Metal ions sorbed onto columns were eluted by 0.5 to 2.0 M HNO₃. The preconcentration factors of Cd(II) and Cu(II) on azo-BA-PS-DVB and Cu(II) on BA-PS-DVB were 50, 50, and 20, respectively. The present column method gave acceptable validation results: 71.2 and 74.0% recovery for Cd(II) and Cu(II) and an overall relative standard deviation (R.S.D) less than 10% (n = 15). The proposed method was applicable for determining Cu(II) in drinking water.     

Vesicle formation induced by metal ions from micelle-forming sodium hexadecylimino diacetate in dilute aqueous solution

In dilute aqueous solution, micelle-forming sodium hexadecylimino diacetate assembles into vesicles induced by Cu(II), Co(II) and Ni(II) ions.     

Sorption of silicic acid from non-saturated aqueous solution by a complex of zinc ions with poly(vinylamine)

Silicifying organisms (diatom algae, sponges, etc.) build multifarious silica and composite nano-structures which attracts rapt attention of specialists in nanotechnology. These organisms can capture monomeric silicic acid from diluted solutions (<1 mM) and molecular mechanism of this process is still unknown. Some hypotheses include mediatorial role of zinc ions coordinated with a special protein transporter. We have studied several basic hydrogels and their complexes with double charged metal ions in sorption of silicic acid from non-saturated solutions. Cross-linked poly(vinylamine) coordinated with Zn²⁺ was able to capture silicic acid from 0.1 to 1.7 mM solutions. The other ions (Cu²⁺, Fe²⁺, Ni²⁺, Co²⁺, Cd²⁺ and Mn²⁺) and less basic poly(1-vinylimiazole) were not active in the sorption. A mechanism included oligomerization of silicic acid and formation of triple complex poly(vinylamine)-Zn²⁺-oligosiloxane was proposed. FTIR, NMR and EDS data confirm this conclusion. The found capture of silicic acid from diluted solutions with polyamine-zinc complex shows possibility in principle of the zinc-mediated transmembrane transport of Si(OH)₄ in silicifying organisms. On the other hand, the ability of zinc ions immobilized on the polyamine support to capture oligosilicates could be used in directed assembly of nanocomposite structures by the “bottom-up” approaches.     

The thermodynamic characteristics of complex formation between calcium ions and L-leucine in aqueous solution

Complex formation of L-leucine with calcium ions in aqueous solution was studied by potentiometric titration at 298.15 K and ionic strength values I = 0.5, 1.0, and 1.5 (KNO₃). The formation of the CaL⁺ and CaHL²⁺ complex particles was established and their stability constants were determined. The enthalpies of protolytic equilibria of leucine and formation of calcium ion complexes with leucine were determined calorimetrically at 298.15 K and I = 0.5 (KNO₃). The thermodynamic characteristics of complex formation between calcium ions and L-leucine were calculated.     

Sorption of metal ions from multicomponent aqueous solutions by activated carbons produced from waste

Activated carbons produced by thermal treatment of a mixture of sunflower husks, low-grade coal, and refinery waste were studied as adsorbents of transition ion metals from aqueous solutions of various compositions. The optimal conditions and the mechanism of sorption, as well as the structure of the sorbents, were studied.     

Determination of the complex formation constants for some water-soluble polymers with trivalent metal ions by differential pulse polarography

The formation of metal complexes between water-soluble polymers, poly(vinyl alcohol) [PVA], poly(N-vinylpyrrolidone) [PVP], poly(acrylamide) [PAAm] and poly(ethylene oxide) [PEO] with trivalent metal ions, Fe³⁺, Cr³⁺, and V³⁺ were studied by using differential pulse polarography (DPP). The general experimental observation is the shift of totally reversible reduction peaks (M³⁺+Hg+e^–M²⁺+Hg) towards more negative potentials when the complexing water-soluble polymers are added to the solution of trivalent metal ions. The negative shift in potential permitted the determination of complex formation constants (K_f) between trivalent metal ions and water soluble polymers. The complex formation constants for Fe³⁺, Cr³⁺, and V³⁺ ions with these polymers increased in the order of V³⁺>Cr³⁺>Fe³⁺.     

Complexation of polymethacrylopiperidide with transition metal ions in aqueous solution

The interactions of polymethacrylopiperidide with Cu²⁺, Ni²⁺, Co²⁺ and Fe³⁺ ions have been investigated by potentiometric and conductometric titration, ESR and u.v. spectroscopy, viscometry and sedimentation. The average number of ligands coordinating with the central metal ions and the stability constants of polymeric metal complexes were determined. It is assumed that the polymethacrylopiperidide interacts with transition metal ions through the nitrogen atoms. The influence of spatial arrangement of donor atoms on the coordination ability of polyligand is discussed.     

A study of the hydration of the alkali metal ions in aqueous solution

The hydration of the alkali metal ions in aqueous solution has been studied by large angle X-ray scattering (LAXS) and double difference infrared spectroscopy (DDIR). The structures of the dimethyl sulfoxide solvated alkali metal ions in solution have been determined to support the studies in aqueous solution. The results of the LAXS and DDIR measurements show that the sodium, potassium, rubidium and cesium ions all are weakly hydrated with only a single shell of water molecules. The smaller lithium ion is more strongly hydrated, most probably with a second hydration shell present. The influence of the rubidium and cesium ions on the water structure was found to be very weak, and it was not possible to quantify this effect in a reliable way due to insufficient separation of the O-D stretching bands of partially deuterated water bound to these metal ions and the O-D stretching bands of the bulk water. Aqueous solutions of sodium, potassium and cesium iodide and cesium and lithium hydroxide have been studied by LAXS and M-O bond distances have been determined fairly accurately except for lithium. However, the number of water molecules binding to the alkali metal ions is very difficult to determine from the LAXS measurements as the number of distances and the temperature factor are strongly correlated. A thorough analysis of M-O bond distances in solid alkali metal compounds with ligands binding through oxygen has been made from available structure databases. There is relatively strong correlation between M-O bond distances and coordination numbers also for the alkali metal ions even though the M-O interactions are weak and the number of complexes of potassium, rubidium and cesium with well-defined coordination geometry is very small. The mean M-O bond distance in the hydrated sodium, potassium, rubidium and cesium ions in aqueous solution have been determined to be 2.43(2), 2.81(1), 2.98(1) and 3.07(1) ?, which corresponds to six-, seven-, eight- and eight-coordination. These coordination numbers are supported by the linear relationship of the hydration enthalpies and the M-O bond distances. This correlation indicates that the hydrated lithium ion is four-coordinate in aqueous solution. New ionic radii are proposed for four- and six-coordinate lithium(I), 0.60 and 0.79 ?, respectively, as well as for five- and six-coordinate sodium(I), 1.02 and 1.07 ?, respectively. The ionic radii for six- and seven-coordinate K(+), 1.38 and 1.46 ?, respectively, and eight-coordinate Rb(+) and Cs(+), 1.64 and 1.73 ?, respectively, are confirmed from previous studies. The M-O bond distances in dimethyl sulfoxide solvated sodium, potassium, rubidium and cesium ions in solution are very similar to those observed in aqueous solution.     

Adsorption of heavy metal ions from aqueous solution by polyrhodanine-encapsulated magnetic nanoparticles

The influence of salt concentration on the terminal velocities of gravity-driven single bubbles sliding along an inclined glass wall has been investigated, in an effort to establish whether surface forces acting between the wall and the bubble influence the latter's mobility. A simple sliding bubble apparatus was employed to measure the terminal velocities of air bubbles with radii ranging from 0.3 to 1.5 mm sliding along the interior wall of an inclined Pyrex glass cylinder with inclination angles between 0.6 and 40.1°. Experiments were performed in pure water, 10 mM and 100 mM KCl solutions. We compared our experimental results with a theory by Hodges et al. which considers hydrodynamic forces only, and with a theory developed by two of us which considers surface forces to play a significant role. Our experimental results demonstrate that the terminal velocity of the bubble not only varies with the angle of inclination and the bubble size but also with the salt concentration, particularly at low inclination angles of ～1-5°, indicating that double-layer forces between the bubble and the wall influence the sliding behavior. This is the first demonstration that terminal velocities of sliding bubbles are affected by disjoining pressure.     

Kinetics of metal ions adsorption at heterogeneous solid/solution interfaces: A theoretical treatment based on statistical rate theory

The statistical rate theory combined with a two-component competitive adsorption model is applied to describe the effect of pH on the kinetics of metal ions adsorption at energetically heterogeneous solid/solution interfaces. The surface heterogeneity has been represented by both Gaussian-like and rectangular functions of the adsorption energy distribution. A concept of effective heterogeneity parameters is found to represent very well the combined effects of surface energetic heterogeneity and of the electrostatic lateral interactions in the adsorbed phase, described by using the mean field approximation. The applicability of our approach is demonstrated by a quantitative analysis of two sets of experimental data reported in literature. Our theoretical expressions have been able to successfully correlate kinetic and equilibrium data in both these cases.     

Complex formation between phytic acid and divalent metal ions: a solution equilibria and solid state investigation

An investigation on the complex formation equilibria between divalent metal ions Me (with Me=Mn, Co, Ni, Cu, Cd, and Pb) and phytic acid (H(12)L) is presented. Experiments were performed through a potentiometric methodology by measuring, at 25 degrees C, the proton and, in some cases (Cu(2+), Cd(2+), and Pb(2+)), also the metal ion activity at equilibrium in solutions containing, besides the metal and the ligand, 3 M NaClO(4) as the ionic medium. Unhydrolyzed solutions of the metal ion at millimolar concentration levels were titrated with solutions of about 10 mM sodium phytate, until the formation of a solid phase took place (always at pH approximately 2.5, except in the case of Cu(2+), which formed soluble complexes up to pH approximately 3.3). Coulometry was employed to produce very dilute solutions of either Cu(2+), Cd(2+), or Pb(2+) of accurately known composition. The emf data were explained by assuming, in the acidity interval explored, the formation of the complexes of general stoichiometry MeH(5)L(5-) and Me(2)H(3)L(5-). Coordination compounds in the solid state were also synthesized and characterized by elemental analysis, thermal analysis, and ICP spectroscopy. The solids had a general stoichiometry Me(6)H (t)LCl (t). x H(2)O, with the following t and x values for each metal investigated: Me ( t; x) = Mn (4; 2); Co (4; 2); Ni (4; 2); Cu (2; 2.5); Zn (2; 1); Sn (6; 6).     

Speciation of phytate ion in aqueous solution. Alkali metal complex formation in different ionic media

The acid–base properties of phytic acid [myo-inositol 1,2,3,4,5,6-hexakis(dihydrogen phosphate)] (H₁₂Phy; Phy^12–=phytate anion) were studied in aqueous solution by potentiometric measurements ([H⁺]-glass electrode) in lithium and potassium chloride aqueous media at different ionic strengths (0<I mol L^–13) and at t=25 °C. The protonation of phytate proved strongly dependent on both ionic medium and ionic strength. The protonation constants obtained in alkali metal chlorides are considerably lower than the corresponding ones obtained in a previous paper in tetraethylammonium iodide (Et₄NI; e.g., at I=0.5 mol L^–1, logK₃^H=11.7, 8.0, 9.1, and 9.1 in Et₄NI, LiCl, NaCl and KCl, respectively; the protonation constants in Et₄NI and NaCl were already reported), owing to the strong interactions occurring between the phytate and alkaline cations present in the background salt. We explained this in terms of complex formation between phytate and alkali metal ions. Experimental evidence allows us to consider the formation of 13 mixed proton–metal–ligand complexes, M_jH_iPhy^{(12–i–j)–}, (M⁺=Li⁺, Na⁺, K⁺), with j7 and i6, in the range 2.5pH10 (some measurements, at low ionic strength, were extended to pH=11). In particular, all the species formed are negatively charged: i+j–12=–5, –6. Very high formation percentages of M⁺–phytate species are observed in all the pH ranges investigated. The stability of alkali metal complexes follows the trend Li⁺Na⁺K⁺. Some measurements were also performed at constant ionic strength (I=0.5 mol L^–1), using different mixtures of Et₄NI and alkali metal chlorides, in order to confirm the formation of hypothesized and calculated metal–proton–ligand complex species and to obtain conditional protonation constants in these multi-component ionic media.Presented at SIMEC–02, Santiago de Compostela, 2–6 June 2002     

Sorption investigation on the removal of metal ions from aqueous solutions using chelating terpolymer resin

A novel chelating terpolymer resin has been synthesized from anthranilic acid, phenylhydrazine, and formaldehyde by condensation in glacial acetic acid. The structure of the chelating resin was clearly elucidated by use of a variety of spectral techniques, for example FTIR, and ¹H and ¹³C NMR spectroscopy. The average molecular weight of the terpolymer resin was determined by gel-permeation chromatography. The empirical formula and empirical weight of the resin were determined by elemental analysis. The physicochemical properties of the terpolymer resin were determined. Scanning electron microscopy was used to establish the surface features of the chelating resin. The ion-exchange behaviour of the resin for specific metal ions, viz. Fe³⁺, Co²⁺, Ni²⁺, Cu²⁺, Zn²⁺, and Pb²⁺, was evaluated by a batch equilibrium method. The study was extended to three variations: evaluation of metal ion uptake in the presence of different electrolytes at different concentrations; evaluation of metal ion uptake at different pH; and evaluation of metal ion uptake at different times. Further, the reusability of the resin was also determined to assess the efficiency of the resin after a few cycles of sorption. From the results it was observed that the resin acts as an effective chelating ion-exchanger.