Ion-pair-based surfactant-assisted dispersive liquid–liquid microextraction for the determination of cadmium in water samples: Optimization using response surface methodology

Abstract

A sensitive, simple, and rapid method is developed for ion-pair-based surfactant-assisted dispersive liquid–liquid microextraction (IPSA-DLLME) and flame atomic absorption spectrometric determination of cadmium in water samples. In this procedure, trace amounts of Cd2+ were converted to CdI42–, and after addition of a tetrabutylammonium bromide (TBAB) solution as cationic surfactant the analyte was transformed to the ion-pair state. This cadmium species was extracted by fast injection of a solution containing 200 μL of chloroform and 800 μL of methanol as extraction and disperser solvents, respectively. The pH of the sample solution, concentration of iodide, TBAB amount, and the extractant volume were optimized using a 27-run Box–Behnken design with a triplicate central point. Under the optimized conditions, the calibration curve was linear in the range 1–200 μg L–1 (R2 = 0.9959); with the detection limit (signal/noise = 3) of 0.28 μg L–1. The relative standard deviations (RSD) for eight runs (Cd2+ = 10 μg L–1) and enrichment factor were found to be 3.04 % and 50, respectively.