A Rapid Spectrophotometric Method for the Determination of Cobalt in Industrial, Environmental, Biological, Pharmaceutical and Soil Samples Using Bis(5-bromosalicylaldehyde)orthophenylenediamine

A very simple, ultra-sensitive and fairly selective spectrophotometric method is presented for the determination of cobalt at trace levels using bis(5-bromosalicylaldehyde)orthophenylenediamine (BBSOPD). The method is based on the reaction of non-absorbent BBSOPD in a slightly acidic (0.001-0.0025 M H2SO4 or pH 3.4-4.0) and 50% N,N-dimethylformamide media with cobalt(II) to produce a highly absorbent orange colored chelate-product with an absorption maximum at 473 nm. The reaction is instantaneous and the absorption remains stable for 24 h. The average molar absorption coefficient and Sandell’s sensitivity were found to be 5.84 × 104 l mol-1 cm-1 and 9.0 ng cm-2 of cobalt(II), respectively. Linear calibration graphs were obtained for 0.02-4.0 mg l-1 of Co(II). The stoichiometric composition of the chelate is 1:1 (Co(II):BBSOPD). A large excess of over 50 cations, anions and complexing agents do not interfere in the determination. The method was successfully used for the determination of cobalt in several standard reference materials (steels and alloys), environmental waters (potable and polluted), biological samples (human blood and urine), pharmaceutical and soil samples and solutions containing both cobalt(II) and cobalt(III) as well as some complex synthetic mixtures. The method has high precision and accuracy.