Analytical Sciences


Abstract − Analytical Sciences, 22(2), 259 (2006).

A Simple and Sensitive Analytical Method for the Determination of Antimony in Environmental and Biological Samples
Kishore K. TIWARI, Girdhar L. MUNDHARA, Manish K. RAI, and Vinay K. GUPTA
School of Studies in Chemistry, Pt. Ravishankar Shukla University, Raipur, 492010, India
The results of a study and application of leucocrystal violet for the determination of antimony in parts per million levels is described here. The proposed method is based on the reaction of antimony(III) with acidified potassium iodate to liberate iodine. The liberated iodine selectively oxidizes leucocrystal violet to crystal violet dye. The formed dye shows maximum absorbance at 590 nm. The color system obeys Beer's law in the concentration range from 0.4 - 3.6 µg antimony per 25 ml of final solution. The molar absorptivity and Sandell's sensitivity were found to be 7.32 × 105 l mol-1 cm-1 and 0.0016 µg cm-2, respectively. All variables were studied in order to optimize the reaction. The proposed method is satisfactorily applicable for the analysis of antimony in various environmental and biological samples. The method is simple, highly sensitive, accurate and reliable.