Determination of inorganic arsenic species in soil extracts by a simple spectrophotometric method.
A simple and inexpensive method for the determination of inorganic As(III) and As(V) at low ppb levels was developed. The method is based on formation of hydride from a sample solution and its reaction with mercury bromide on a solid support. Formation of a yellow-brownish product was optically detected. Amidosulfonic acid was used as a reaction medium for determination of total inorganic arsenic, while citrate buffer (0.1 mol/dm, pH=5.5) was used as a reaction media for determination of As(III) alone. As(V) was calculated as a difference of total inorganic arsenic and As(III). This method has been applied to soil extracts. Extraction of inorganic arsenic from soil samples was done in three-step sequential extraction with the following extractants: NH4H2PO4 (0.05 mol/dm); NH4-oxalate buffer (0.2 mol/dm, pH=3.25); and mixture of NH4-oxalate buffer (0.2 mol/dm) and ascorbic acid (0.1 mol/dm) at pH=3.25. The method was suitable for determination of inorganic arsenic species in soil extracts covering concentration range of the analyte between 0.2 20 ppb.