Solvent extraction separation and spectrophotometric determination of ruthenium(III) with p-methylphenyl thiourea: sequential separation of ruthenium, osmium and iron

ABSTRACT

A selective and sensitive solvent extraction and spectrophotometric study of the ruthenium(III)–p-methylphenyl thiourea (PMPT) system is presented. The optimum conditions were determined by a critical study of acid concentration, reagent concentration, equilibration period, heating time and effect of solvent on the equilibrium. Ruthenium(III) forms 1:1 complex with PMPT in 20% ethanol and extracted into chloroform. Conformity to Beer’s law at 600 nm was observed up to 40 µg mL^–1 of ruthenium. Molar absorptivity and Sandell’s sensitivity were found to be 2.31 × 10³ L mol⁻¹cm⁻¹ and 0.044 μg cm⁻², respectively. The detection limits were 0.11 μg mL⁻¹ of ruthenium. The method is free from interferences from large number of cations and anions. Proposed method was successfully applied to the separation and determination of ruthenium from synthetic alloys, catalyst and water samples. Sequential separation and determination method for ruthenium(III), osmium(VIII) and iron(II) has been developed.

Graphical Abstract

KEYWORDS:

• P-methylphenyl thiourea
• solvent extraction
• sequential separation