Chemiluminescence determination of sulfite in sugar and of sulfur dioxide in air using the tris(2,2′-bipyridyl)ruthenium-KIO 4 system

Abstract

The chemiluminescence (CL) detection for the determination of sulfite using the reaction of Ru(bipy)3 2+(bipy=2,2′-bipyridyl)-SO3 2–-KIO4 is described. The concentration of sulfite is proportional to the CL intensity from 1.0 × 10–7 to 1.0 × 10–4 mol/L. The limit of detection is 2.0 × 10–8 mol/L and the relative standard deviation is 4.4% for a 2 × 10–5 mol/L sulfite solution (n = 9). This method has successfully been applied to the determination of sulfite in powdered sugar (sucrose) and of sulfur dioxide in air by using triethanolamine (TEA) as absorbent material.