DETERMINATION OF LEAD IN WATER BY ELECTROTHERMAL ATOMIC-ABSORPTION SPECTROMETRY WITH A NICKEL(II) AMMONIUM-TARTRATE MODIFIER

A method is described for the determination of low concentrations of lead in water samples. Atomic absorption spectrometry is used with a tungsten ribbon furnace and Zeeman background correction. Interferences are eliminated by the addition of ammonium tartrate and nickel(II) nitrate to the samples to act as a matrix modifier and adjust the pH. The results show the superior performance of this modifier over other types used conventionally. The detection limit is 1-mu-g l-1 relative standard deviation of < 10%. When multiple sample injection is used, a detection limit of 0.1-mu-g l-1 can be obtained. The instrumentation is simple and the method is efficient for the determination of lead in various water samples.