Arsenopyrite mineral based electrochemical sensor for acid–base titrations in γ-butyrolactone and propylene carbonate

Abstract

A novel acid–base sensor based on the natural mineral arsenopyrite for titrations in γ-butyrolactone and propylene carbonate is validated and studied. This sensor, which requires only small sample volumes, was employed for the titrations of some important organic acids (benzoic, anthranilic, and salicylic acid) with potassium hydroxide. A stable stationary potential was attained at the arsenopyrite electrode in γ-butyrolactone and propylene carbonate in less than 5 min. The change in the electrode potential from the acidic to basic region was 379 to −160 mV in γ-butyrolactone and 434 to −67 mV in propylene carbonate. The arsenopyrite electrode showed a relatively fast response time in the investigated solvents (11 s in γ-butyrolactone and 14 s in propylene carbonate). It can be used without any time limit or without considerable divergence in the potential. The investigated electrode showed a linear dynamic response for p-toluenesulfonic acid concentrations in the range 0.1–0.001 M, and a sub-Nernst dependence in γ-butyrolactone as well as in propylene carbonate. Unlike traditional pH titration, an end-point color indicator is unnecessary in this method, and real-time monitoring can be realized. The relative standard deviations for measurements of benzoic, anthranilic, and salicylic acids were 0.10–0.31%, which show that the repeatability and accuracy of measurements taken with the sensor are satisfactory.