Studies on Nickel and Cobalt in Mineral Springs. I. Nickel Content of Acid Vitriol Springs in Japan

Abstract

Abstract The determination method for nickel in mineral springs and some applications of it have been described. The method of extracting nickel was taken from Sandell’s report, which is based on the extraction of nickel dimethylglyoxime from ammoniacal citrate solution using chloroform. For the purpose of obtaining an accurate determination, some improvements were made on Rollet’s method; as the concentration of ammonium hydroxide in the final solution was made higher, the reproducibility was increased, and therefore, Pulfrich photometer could be employed instead of Duboscq colorimeter. The mean error of the determinations did not exceed ±2 per cent. Some fifteen samples of acid vitriol springs were analysed in connection with nickel and a few other elements. The richest in nickel was Wakesui, Okayama Prefecture, with the richest total residue and iron content. The percentage of nickel in the total residue ranged from 0.00026 to 0.0087%, and the average is 0.0024%, showing a far higher value against either Clarke number for nickel or the percentage of the mean nickel content of igneous rocks, while the ratio Ni/Fe of the present analyses covers the range from 0.67×10−4 to 8.59×10−4, the average of which is 2.68×10−4, far less than either 2.02×10−3 of Clarke number or 5.81×10−3 of igneous rocks. Finally, details on some springs, —Wakesui, Okayama Prefecture, Aoki, Yamanasi Prefecture, and Kinkei, Totigi Prefecture—have been related. The distribution of nickel between the ocherous ferric hydroxide precipitated from the water of Kinkei and its filtrate has been represented and the answer to the question whether the deposit of ferric hydroxide from waters of. the kind accompanies nickel or not, suggested.