Flow Injection Biamperometric Determination of Nitrite and Nitrate

Abstract

A simple and efficient FIA method was used with good results to determine nitrite in residual waters and nitrate in natural waters. Nitrite determination is based on the reaction with iodide occurring in acidic medium and biamperometric detection of the formed iodine at two platinum electrodes polarised at a potential of 100 mV. Nitrate is similarly determined after its previous reduction to nitrite in a cadmium column. The method does not need the solution deaeration. However, the calibration graphs present two regions of linearity owing to the catalytic effect of the dissolved oxygen on the iodide oxidation by nitrite.

Key Words:

• Nitrite
• nitrate
• biamperometry
• flow injection