Spectrophotometric determination of copper in alloys using naphthazarin

Naphthazarin (5,8-dihydroxy-1,4-naphthoquinone; Naph) is proposed as a chromogenic reagent for the spectrophotometric determination of copper(II). The polynuclear complex has a mole ratio of Cu:Naph=4:6 in a 50% v/v ethanol/water medium containing 0.1 M ammonium acetate and 1.5% (w/v) sodium dodecyl sulfate. The copper-naphthazarin complex shows an absorption maximum at 330 nm with a molar absorptivity of 1.84x10(4) l mol(-1) cm(-1). Beer's law is obeyed up to 4.5 ppm of copper(II). The method was applied for copper determination in alloy samples with satisfactory results.     

Determination of anti-inflammatory drugs in water samples, by in situ derivatization, solid phase microextraction and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry

In this work, the reactions of various copper ions with 1,3,3-trimethyl-2-[5-(1,3,3-trimethyl-1,3-dihydro-indol-2-ylidene)-penta-1,3-dienyl]-3H-indolium--more commonly known as dimethylindodicarbocyanine polymethyne dye (DIDC)--as well as the application of the results obtained for the development of a spectrophotometric method for the determination of Cu(I), Cu(II) and Cu(III) are described. Cu(I) and Cu(II) in the presence of chloride ions and DIDC reagent are extractable by a variety of organic solvents. It is important to emphasize that Cu(I) was extracted under considerably different experimental conditions than Cu(II). The optimum conditions for the extraction of the Cu ion associates with DIDC by amyl acetate and the determination of Cu(I) and Cu(II) were found to be: pH 3-5 and pH 3-6 and chloride concentrations of 0.5-0.8 mol L(-1) and 3-6 mol L(-1) for Cu(I) and Cu(II), respectively. The molar absorptivities for Cu(I) and Cu(II) are 1.8x10(5) L mol(-1) cm(-1) and 1.2x10(5) L mol(-1) cm(-1), respectively. A reaction mechanism is suggested. Cu(III) does not extract in the presence of chloride ions. However, Cu(III) is a strong oxidative agent which can cause the decolourisation of the DIDC reagent. The optimum conditions for Cu(III) determination were found to be: 2x10(-5) mol L(-1) DIDC; pH 8; water:acetone 4:1 medium. The developed procedures were tested for the determination of Cu(I), Cu(II) and Cu(III) in semiconductor samples.     

Quantitative analysis of manganese, chromium and molybdenum by ion-pair reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography with pre-column derivatization and UV-visible detection.

An ion-pair reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatographic method with UV-visible spectrophotometric detection is proposed for the simultaneous determination of manganese, chromium and molybdenum. By using a C18-bonded silica column, 4-(2-pyridylazo)resorcinol (PAR) chelates of Mn(II), Cr(VI) and Mo(VI) were successfully separated and accurately determined at 480 nm. Tetrabutylammonium bromide (TBAB) was used as the ion-pair reagent. Effects of pH, the buffer system, the concentration of buffer, the color developing time, the concentration of chelating reagent and the ion-pair reagent on the resolution were investigated. PAR chelates were eluted within 20 min at a flow-rate of 1.0 ml min(-1) with a methanol aqueous mobile phase, CH3OH-water (20:80, v/v), containing 1.0 x 10(-3) mol l(-1) acetate buffer (pH 6.5), 1.8 x 10(-2) mol l(-1) TBAB and 2.0 x 10(-4) mol l(-1) PAR. The feasibility of the proposed method was verified with the standard reference materials of nickel-based alloys. The nickel-based alloys were analyzed chromatographically after ammonium pretreatment. Under the optimum conditions, the detection limits for the chelates of Mn(II), Cr(VI) and Mo(VI) were 0.31, 4.2 and 4.6 ng with 100 microl injection, respectively. The accuracy of the proposed chromatographic method was verified by good agreement between the values obtained by this method and certified values.     

A new sensitive reagent for identifying and determining Cu(2+)

The synthesis of the new long-chain saturated fatty hydrocarbon substituting group compound, N-undecyl-N'-(sodium p-aminobenzenesulfonate)-thiourea (UPT) is described. According to the studies on its analytical performance, it is found that this reagent can be used to identify Cu(2+)(PD 6.3) and determine microamounts of copper (epsilon(300.4 nm)=2.39x10(5) l mol(-1)cm(-1)) in aqueous solution. Both of their sensitivities and selectivity's are better than other common methods [1-3].These new methods are simple and convenient and can provide satisfactory results on samples.     

Determination of copper(II) by anodic stripping voltammetry at a 2,5-dimercapto-1,3,4-thiadiazol self-assembled monolayer-based gold electrode.

2,5-Dimercapto-1,3,4-thiadiazol (DMTD) can bind on the surface of a gold electrode through the strong gold-sulfur interaction. The fabrication and electrochemical characteristics of the DMTD self-assembled monolayer (SAM)-modified gold electrode were investigated. The DMTD SAM electrode exhibited a significantly increased sensitivity. Cu(II) was accumulated in phosphate buffer (pH 4.6) at a potential of -0.6 V (vs. Ag/AgCl) for 40 s and then determined by anodic stripping voltammetry (ASV) in copper-free phosphate buffer (pH 5.0). The effects of various parameters, such as the pH values of the preconcentration solution and measurement solution, the accumulation potential, and the accumulation time, were investigated. Under the optimum conditions, a linear calibration graph was obtained in the concentration range of 8.0 x 10(-6) to 8.0 x 10(-5) mol l(-1) with a correlation coefficient of 0.9978. The relative standard deviations for eight successive determinations were 4.3 and 2.9% for 1.0 x 10(-5) and 2.0 x 10(-5) mol l(-1) Cu(II), respectively. The detection limit (three times signal to noise) was 4.0 x 10(-7) mol l(-1). The proposed voltammetric method was utilized successfully to detect the concentration of Cu(II) ions in tap water samples.     

Simultaneous determination of copper, mercury and zinc in water with a tailored fluorescent bipyridine ligand entrapped in silica sol-gel

A novel fluorescent ligand, (4-[(E)-2-(4'-methyl-2,2'-bipyridin-4-yl)vinyl]phenol) (abbreviated BSOH), has been designed and prepared for simultaneous determination of heavy metals in water. Its photophysical and photochemical properties in the absence and in the presence of Cd(II), Cu(II), Hg(II), Ni(II) and Zn(II) were determined, and the respective complexation constants (7.4 × 10(3)-2.8 × 10(8) l mol(-1)) and stoichiometries were extracted thereof. The Stern-Volmer emission intensity and lifetime plots indicate an efficient static quenching of the indicator dye with the heavy metals. The BSOH fluorescent reagent has been successfully immobilised in a silica sol-gel matrix for automation of the analytical method, and the sensing phase demonstrated a reversible response to Cu(II), Hg(II) and Zn(II) but not to Cd(II) and Ni(II). Characterisation of the sensor showed that its response to those heavy metals is linear in the 2.5 to 50 μmol l(-1) range, with a response time (t (90)) on the order of 100 min, providing detection limits of 9.0 × 10(-7), 4.7 × 10(-7) and 2.9 × 10(-7) mol l (-1) for Zn(II), Cu(II) and Hg(II), respectively. Due to the stability of the immobilised ligand, which presented no leaching from the sol-gel matrix, the simultaneous determination of the three cations in water was feasible by employing multivariate calibration techniques coupled to fluorescence quenching measurements. The sensor was validated with recovery tests by addition of Cu(II) and Hg(II) ions to spring waters, providing results with standard errors lower than 4.1 μmol l (-1).     

Synergistic effect of Ni(II) and Co(II) ions on the sulfite induced autoxidation of Cu(II)/tetraglycine complex

The synergistic effect of Ni(II) and Co(II) on the sulfite induced autoxidation of Cu(II)/tetraglycine was investigated spectrophotometrically at 25.0 degrees C, pH = 9.0, 1 x 10(-5) mol dm(-3) < or = [S(IV)] < or = 8 x 10(-5) mol dm(-3), [Cu(II)]= 1 x 10(-3) mol dm(-3), 1 x 10(-6) mol dm(-3) < or = [Ni(II)] or [Co(II)] < or = 1 x 10(-4) mol dm(-3), [O2] approximately 2.5 x 10(-4) mol dm(-3), and 0.1 mol dm(-3) ionic strength. In the absence of added nickel(II) or cobalt(II), the kinetic traces of Cu(III)G4 formation show a large induction period (about 3 h). The addition of trace amounts of Ni(II) or Co(II) increases the reaction rate significantly and the induction period drastically decreases (less than 0.5 s). The effectiveness of Cu(III)G4 formation becomes much higher. The metal ion in the trivalent oxidation state rapidly oxidizes SO3(2-) to SO3*-, which reacts with oxygen to produce SO5*-. The strongly generated oxidants oxidize Cu(II)G4 to Cu(III).     

Evaluation of a carbon paste electrode modified with organofunctionalised SBA-15 nanostructured silica in the simultaneous determination of divalent lead, copper and mercury ions

The performance of a carbon paste electrode (CPE) modified with SBA-15 nanostructured silica organofunctionalised with 2-benzothiazolethiol in the simultaneous determination of Pb(II), Cu(II) and Hg(II) ions in natural water and sugar cane spirit (cacha?a) is described. Pb(II), Cu(II) and Hg(II) were pre-concentrated on the surface of the modified electrode by complexing with 2-benzothiazolethiol and reduced at a negative potential (-0.80 V). Then the reduced products were oxidised by DPASV procedure. The fact that three stripping peaks appeared on the voltammograms at the potentials of -0.48 V (Pb2+), -0.03 V (Cu2+) and +0.36 V (Hg2+) in relation to the SCE, demonstrates the possibility of simultaneous determination of Pb2+, Cu2+ and Hg2+. The best results were obtained under the following optimised conditions: 100 mV pulse amplitude, 3 min accumulation time, 25 mV s(-1) scan rate in phosphate solution pH 3.0. Using such parameters, calibration graphs were linear in the concentration ranges of 3.00-70.0 x 10(-7) mol L(-1) (Pb2+), 8.00-100.0 x 10(-7) mol L(-1) (Cu2+) and 2.00-10.0 x 10(-6) mol L(-1) (Hg2+). Detection limits of 4.0 x 10(-8) mol L(-1) (Pb2+), 2.0 x 10(-7) mol L(-1) (Cu2+) and 4.0 x 10(-7) mol L(-1) (Hg2+) were obtained at the signal noise ratio (SNR) of 3. The results indicate that this electrode is sensitive and effective for simultaneous determination of Pb2+, Cu2+ and Hg2+ in the analysed samples.     

Influence of Cu(II) on the interaction between sulfite and horseradish peroxidase in vitro

This paper discussed the quantitative influence of Cu(II) on the interaction between horseradish peroxidase (HRP) and sulfite (SO3(2-)), which is a derivate of sulfite dioxide in human bodies, by using fluorescence spectrum and ultraviolet (UV) absorption spectrometry in vitro. The results show that under the conditions of physiological pH and room-temperature, Cu(II) can bind strongly with both the protein part and the ferroporphyrin part in HRP at a low concentration (10(-4) mol L(-1)), and the combination constants are 2.047 x 10(3) and 7.66 x 10(2) L mol(-1), respectively. Under the same conditions, SO3(2-) at low concentrations (<0.15 mol L(-1)) has little quenching for the fluorescence of HRP at 330 nm, and the combination constant is 0.108 L mol(-1). While the fluorescence intensity at 440 nm enhance gradually with the increased concentration of SO3(2-) (<0.1 mol L(-1)), and the combination constant is 8.219 L mol(-1). These indicate that SO3(2-) at low concentration has little reaction with the enzyme protein part in HRP but obvious reaction with the ferroporphyrin part in HRP. After SO3(2-) at low concentrations is added into the HRP-Cu(II) binary system, the reaction constants between SO3(2-) and the enzyme protein part in HRP increase rapidly. Compared with the absence of Cu(II), the combination constant of SO3(2-) with the enzyme protein part in HRP increases nearly 70 times with a certain Cu(II) concentration (5.0 x 10(-4) mol L(-1)) in the system. However, the presence of Cu(II) in the system has little effect on the reaction constants between SO3(2-) and the ferroporphyrin part in HRP.     

Determination of platinum(IV) by UV spectrophotometry

A simple, rapid and sensitive spectrophotometric procedure for the determination of platinum has been elaborated. Pt traces were determined in the form of the PtCl(6)(2-) complex in hydrochloric acid solution whose concentration varies from 0.01 to 2 mol L(-1) by measuring the absorbance at 260 nm. The detection limit is 4.7 x 10(-7) mol L(-1), the linearity range from 2 x 10(-6) mol L(-1) to 7 x 10(-6) mol L(-1), and the correlation coefficient is r=0.9990. No significant interferences were observed from a majority of the investigated ions, such as Zn(II), Pb(II), Mn(II), Cd(II), Co(II) and Ni(II) with the exception of Cu(II), Sb(III), Fe(III), Pd(II), Sn(II) and I(-) ions. The method was successfully applied for the determination of Pt traces in different solid samples and the recovery from inorganic materials was studied.     

Copper(II)-selective electrode using 2,2'-dithiodianiline as neutral carrier

Poly(vinyl chloride) membrane electrode, that is highly selective and sensitive to Cu(II) ions, was developed by using 2,2'-dithiodianiline and dibutyl phthalate as carrier and plasticizer, respectively. The electrode exhibits good potentiometric response for Cu(II) over a wide concentration range (5.0x10(-2)-7.0x10(-7) mol l(-1)) with Nernstian slope of 30+/-1 mV per decade. The response time of the electrode is 10 s and it has been used for a period of one month and exhibits good selectivity towards Cu(2+) in comparison to alkali, alkaline earth, transition and heavy metal ions, with no interference caused by Pb(2+), Cd(2+) and Fe(+2) which are known to interfere with many other copper electrodes.     

Determination of polyamines by flow injection analysis with a chemiluminescence detector based on their complexation with copper(II).

Through the flow injection analysis experiments, we discovered that an unsaturated complex of Cu(II) and polyamines (spermine, spermidine, putrescine) had a strongly catalytic effect on luminol-H(2)O(2) chemiluminescence (CL) reaction, and that the CL intensity is proportional to the concentrations of polyamines. Based on the automatic formation of an unsaturated complex of polyamines and Cu(II) when the solution containing polyamines passed through a column packed with solid Cu(OH)(2), a new flow injection chemiluminescence analysis method was proposed for the determination of polyamines. The effects of pH, buffer concentration, the concentration of chemiluminescence reagent, and the influence of mixing coil length were examined. Under optimal conditions, the linear range was from 1.0 x 10(-7) mol L(-1) to 1.0 x 10(-5) mol L(-1), and the detection limits were 0.17, 0.38, 0.44 pmol for spermine, spermidine, and putrescine, respectively. Compared with other methods, the advantages of this method include convenience, time-saving and low cost.     

ESR and optical study of Cu2+ doped calcium malonate dihydrate

The ESR study of Cu(2+) doped calcium malonate dihydrate has been done at room temperature. Four magnetically in-equivalent sites for Cu(2+) have been observed. The spin-Hamiltonian parameters evaluated with the fitting of spectra to rhombic symmetry crystalline field are for Cu(2+) site (I): g(x)=2.0963+/-0.0002, g(y)=2.1316+/-0.0002, g(z)=2.4137+/-0.0002, A(x)=(32+/-2)x10(-4)cm(-1), A(y)=(34+/-2)x10(-4)cm(-1), A(z)=(49+/-2)x10(-4)cm(-1), for site (II): g(x)=2.0668+/-0.0002, g(y)=2.0800+/-0.0002, g(z)=2.3561+/-0.0002, A(x)=(34+/-2)x10(-4)cm(-1), A(y)=(36+/-2)x10(-4)cm(-1), A(z)=(51+/-2)x10(-4)cm(-1), for site (III): g(x)=2.0438+/-0.0002, g(y)=2.0623+/-0.0002, g(z)=2.2821+/-0.0002, A(x)=(34+/-2)x10(-4)cm(-1), A(y)=(36+/-2)x10(-4)cm(-1), A(z)=(53+/-2)x10(-4)cm(-1), and for site (IV): g(x)=2.0063+/-0.0002, g(y)=2.0241+/-0.0002, g(z)=2.2357+/-0.0002, A(x)=(35+/-2)x10(-4)cm(-1), A(y)=(37+/-2)x10(-4)cm(-1), A(z)=(54+/-2)x10(-4)cm(-1). The ground state wave function of Cu(2+) has also been determined. The g-anisotropy has been estimated and compared with the experimental value. Further with the help of optical study the nature of bonding of metal ion with different ligands in the complex has been discussed.     

Colorimetric determination of copper in aqueous samples using a flow injection system with a pre-concentration poly(ethylenimine) column

A colorimetric flow injection-system for the determination of Cu(II) in waters based on complexation reaction with 4-(2-pyridylazo)-resorcinol, usually termed PAR, is described. Performing measurements in 0.25 mol l(-1) HNO(3) medium allowed improved selectivity of the analytical method. The lack of sensitivity deriving from the low complex absorption under acidic conditions was balanced by the insertion of an immobilised poly(ethylenimine) (PEI) column where Cu(II) pre-concentration in neutral media occurs. Using sample volumes ranging from 2 to 4 ml, sampling rates of 24 and 12 samples h(-1) within a detection limit of 25 and 13 mug l(-1), respectively, were accomplished. Accuracy of the developed methodology was assessed by comparison with atomic absorption spectrometry being the relationship [FIA] mg l(-1)=1.00 (+/-0.03)x[AAS] mg l(-1)+0.00 (+/-0.02) obtained after analysing 15 samples. Precision was also evaluated using two samples of 0.05 and 0.5 mg l(-1) copper, and a relative standard deviation (R.S.D.) better than 3% was attained for both.     

Degradation of ampicillin in the presence of cadmium (II) ions

Cadmium (II) ion-catalyzed degradation of ampicillin in methanol at 20 degrees C has been studied. It has been observed that the rate values tend to saturate when the concentration of ampicillin or the metal ion is increased. The results obtained in the present study suggest that ampicillin degradation occurs through the formation of a 1:1 (SM) and 2:1 (S(2)M) ampicillin-metal complexes. These complexes decompose giving a single product (absorption maximum at 285 nm; ((p)=1.82x10(4) l mol(-1) cm(-1)) that has been isolated and identified (Cd(II) (L(2-))(2) (H(2)O)(4) Na(2)). The appearance of this product reflects a first order reaction with respect to the 1:1 complex, with a rate constant of 3.87x10(-2) min(-1) and the existence of an equilibrium between the 1:1 and 2:1 initial complexes. The equilibrium constant value, calculated from kinetic data, is 1.7x10(3) l mol(-1).     

2-Amino-5,7-dimethyl-1,8-naphthyridine as a fluorescent reagent for the determination of nitrite

A new fluorescent reagent 2-amino-5,7-dimethyl-1,8-naphthyridine (ADMND) was proposed for the determination of trace nitrite. The reaction is based on the diazotization of naphthyridine amine with nitrite to form a diazonium salt that hydrolyzed when boiling to give hydroxyl group substituted naphthyridine. Fluorescence quenching degree of ADMND by nitrite ion is linear in the nitrite concentration range of 1 x 10(-7) to 2.5 x 10(-6)mol l(-1) with a detection limit of 4.06 x 10(-8)mol l(-1). Reaction and determination acidity for nitrite is the same which made the method much simpler compared with the widely accepted fluorescence method with DAN as a fluorescence reagent.     

Chemiluminescence investigation of NH(2)OH-fluorescein-Cu(2+) system and its application to copper analysis in serum

A novel chemiluminescent system, fluorescein-NH(2)OHOH(-), was developed for the determination of copper(II) in serum. A weak light emission arises from hydroxylamine in the presence of the organic reagent fluorescein in basic aqueous solution. Under the conditions of 1.2 x 10(-3) mol l(-1) NH(2)OH and 5 x 10(-3) mol l(-3) fluorescein, the light intensity is linearly dependent upon the concentration of copper(II) within the range 1-20 ppb. The relative standard deviation of the determination of copper(II) is 4.2% (n = 13) and the detection limit is 0.5 ppb. The system is highly selective for copper except in the presence of iron(II,III) and cobalt(II). In conjunction with potassium fluoride as masking agent, the method was successfully applied to the determination of microamounts of copper(II) in serum. A mechanistic study of the chemiluminescence reaction is also discussed.     

Flotation-spectrophotometric determination of mercury in water samples using iodide and ferroin.

This paper describes a simple and highly selective method for separation, preconcentration and spectrophotometric determination of trace amounts of mercury. The method is based on the flotation of an ion-associate of HgI4(2-) and ferroin between aqueous and n-heptane interface at pH 5. The ion-associate was then separated and dissolved in acetonitrile to measure its absorbance. Quantitative flotation of the ion-associate was achieved when the volume of the water sample containing Hg(II) was varied over 50 - 800 ml. Beer's law was obeyed over the concentration range of 3.2 x 10(-8) - 9.5 x 10(-7) mol l(-1) with an apparent molar absorptivity of 1 x 10(6) l mol(-1) cm(-1) for a 500 ml aliquot of the water sample. The detection limit (n = 25) was 6.2 x 10(-9) mol l(-1), and the RSD (n = 5) for 3.19 x 10(-7) mol l(-1) of Hg(II) was 1.9%. A notable advantage of the method is that the determination of Hg(II) is free from the interference of the almost all cations and anions found in the environmental and waste water samples. The determination of Hg(II) in tap, synthetic waste, and seawater samples was carried out by the present method and a well-established method of extraction with dithizone. The results were satisfactorily comparable so that the applicability of the proposed method was confirmed in encountering with real samples.     

Complexation and determination of palladium (II) ion with para-Cl-phenylazo-R-acid spectrophotometrically

The complexation of para-Cl-phenylazo-R-acid azo dye with Pd(II) has been studied spectrophotometrically. Protonation constant (pK(a)) of the ligand has been calculated and the stability conditional constants of para-Cl-phenylazo-R-acid ligand with palladium ion has been determined at a constant temperature (25.0 degrees C), where the molar ratio of this complex is 1:1 (metal:ligand) with logbeta(1)=3.75, and 1:2 with logbeta(2)=8.55. Solid complex of para-Cl-phenylazo-R-acid has been prepared and characterized on the basis of elemental analysis and FTIR spectral data. A procedure for the spectrophotometric determination of Pd(II) using para-Cl-phenylazo-R-acid as a new azo chromophore is proposed where it is rapid, sensitive and highly specific. Beer's law was obeyed in the range 0.50-10.00 ppm at pH 5.0-6.0 to form a violet-red complex (epsilon=7.7 x 10(4) l(-1) mol(-1) cm(-1) at lambda(max)=560 nm). Metal ions such as Cu(II), Cr(III), La(III), Yb(III), Y(III), and Rh(III) interfere with the complex. Ammonium salt of trimellitic acid is used to precipitate some of the interfering ions and a scheme for separation of Pd(II) from a synthetic mixture similar in composition to platinum ore or deposit was made.     

Dissolution of Nickel Ferrite in Aqueous Solutions Containing Oxalic Acid and Ferrous Salts

The dissolution of nickel ferrite in oxalic acid and in ferrous oxalate-oxalic acid aqueous solution was studied. Nickel ferrite was synthesized by thermal decomposition of a mixed tartrate; the particles were shown to be coated with a thin ferric oxide layer. Dissolution takes place in two stages, the first one corresponding to the dissolution of the ferric oxide outer layer and the second one being the dissolution of Ni(1.06)Fe(1.96)O(4). The kinetics of dissolution during this first stage is typical of ferric oxides: in oxalic acid, both a ligand-assisted and a redox mechanism operates, whereas in the presence of ferrous ions, redox catalysis leads to a faster dissolution. The rate dependence on both oxalic acid and on ferrous ion is described by the Langmuir-Hinshelwood equation; the best fitting corresponds to K(1)(ads)=25.6 mol(-1) dm(-3) and k(1)(max)=9.17x10(-7) mol m(-2) s(-1) and K(2)(ads)=37.1x10(3) mol(-1) dm(-3) and k(2)(max)=62.3x10(-7) mol m(-2) s(-1), respectively. In the second stage, Langmuir-Hinshelwood kinetics also describes the dissolution of iron and nickel from nickel ferrite, with K(1)(ads)=20.8 mol(-1) dm(3) and K(2)(ads)=1.16x10(5) mol(-1) dm(3). For iron, k(1)(max)=1.02x10(-7) mol of Fe m(-2) s(-1) and k(2)(max)=2.38x10(-7) mol of Fe m(-2) s(-1); for nickel, the rate constants k(1)(max) and k(2)(max) are 2.4 and 1.79 times smaller, respectively. The factor 1.79 agrees nicely with the stoichiometric ratio, whereas the factor 2.4 implies the accumulation of some nickel in the residual particles. The rate of nickel dissolution in oxalic acid is higher than that in bunsenite by a factor of 8, whereas hematite is more reactive by a factor of 9 (in the absence of Fe(II)) and 27 (in the presence of Fe (II)). It may be concluded that oxalic acid operates to dissolve iron, and the ensuing disruption of the solid framework accelerates the release of nickel. Copyright 2000 Academic Press.