Comparative substoichiometric extraction of silver with potassium salts of ethyl, propyl, butyl, pentyl and benzyl xanthates

A rapid and sensitive substoichiometric radiochemical method has been developed for the comparative extraction and quantification of silver with potassium salts of ethyl, propyl, butyl, pentyl and benzyl xanthates from hydrochloric, nitric and sulfuric acid media into chloroform. The effect of 0.1–4M H⁺ ion concentration of the respective acid on the substoichiometric extraction of silver was critically studied. The efficiency of the method developed was tested by the determination of 10–100 g silver in standard solutions with an average percentage of error better than 2. The methods developed have been utilized to determine silver content in photofilm washing collected from various photostudios in Tirupati, India.