Trace amounts determination of lead,zinc and copper by adsorptive stripping voltammetry in the presence of dopamine

A selective and sensitive method for simultaneous determination of lead, zinc and copper by adsorptive differential pulse cathodic stripping voltammetry is presented. The method is based on adsorptive accumulation of the complexes of Pb(II), Zn(II), and Cu(II) ions with dopamine onto hanging mercury drop electrode (HMDE), followed by reduction of adsorbed species by differential pulse cathodic stripping voltammetry. The effect of experimental parameters such as pH, dopamine concentration, accumulation time and potential and scan rate were examined. Under the optimized conditions, linear calibration curves were established for the concentration of Pb, Zn, and Cu in the ranges of 5–150, 5–250, and 1–150 ng/mL, respectively. Detection limits of 0.06, 0.25, and 0.04 ng/mL for Pb, Zn, and Cu were obtained. An application of the proposed method is reported for the determination of these elements in some real samples such as natural waters and alloys.