A metallochromic indicator of the sulfonphthalein nitrilodiacetate type, given the name semixylenol orange, was isolated, purified, and characterized. It forms several complexes with zirconium(IV) including a 1: 1 complex in 2M perchloric acid, a polymeric zirconium complex in 1M perchloric acid, and another complex with a large excess of the indicator. Finally, the latter complex has an average molar absorptivity (based on Zr) of 59,000 at 535 m mu and is an extremely sensitive analytical reagent for zirconium.
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