Abstract
Toxic metal contamination of the environment is a global issue. In this paper, we present a low-cost and rapid production of amalgam electrodes used for determination of Cd(II) and Pb(II) in environmental samples (soils and wastewaters) by on-site analysis using difference pulse voltammetry. Changes in the electrochemical signals were recorded with a miniaturized potentiostat (width: 80 mm, depth: 54 mm, height: 23 mm) and a portable computer. The limit of detection (LOD) was calculated for the geometric surface of the working electrode 15 mm2 that can be varied as required for analysis. The LODs were 80 ng·mL−1 for Cd(II) and 50 ng·mL−1 for Pb(II), relative standard deviation, RSD ≤ 8% (n = 3). The area of interest (Dolni Rozinka, Czech Republic) was selected because there is a deposit of uranium ore and extreme anthropogenic activity. Environmental samples were taken directly on-site and immediately analysed. Duration of a single analysis was approximately two minutes. The average concentrations of Cd(II) and Pb(II) in this area were below the global average. The obtained values were verified (correlated) by standard electrochemical methods based on hanging drop electrodes and were in good agreement. The advantages of this method are its cost and time effectivity (approximately two minutes per one sample) with direct analysis of turbid samples (soil leach) in a 2 M HNO3 environment. This type of sample cannot be analyzed using the classical analytical methods without pretreatment.
Highlights
Toxic metals pollution, as a global problem, includes contamination of air, soil, and surface waters as a consequence of traffic, heavy industry, and mining
The hydrogen evolution reaction hinders the deposition of the target metal ion on the electrode surface [40,41]. It may require the use of an amalgam electrode as we demonstrated in this work
Of working of silver colour starts on its surface (Figure to amalgamation, thisoftype of working electrode electrode (Cu/Hg-WE)
Summary
As a global problem, includes contamination of air, soil, and surface waters as a consequence of traffic, heavy industry, and mining Metal elements such as lead and/or cadmium, or their compounds are extremely toxic for the environment even in trace concentrations [1,2]. Depending on several factors such as particle size distribution, organic matter content, and/or vegetation [3], these metals can move long distances and contaminate the land even thousands of kilometres from the source. For this reason, it is necessary to find easy-to-use and inexpensive analytical tools for detection of metals [4].
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