Determination of trace total inorganic arsenic by hydride generation atomic fluorescence spectrometry after solid phase extraction-preconcentration on aluminium hydroxide gel

We describe a simple, effective, inexpensive and rapid method for the determination of trace amounts of total inorganic arsenic in water samples by means of a modified solid phase preconcentration procedure using an aluminium hydroxide gel sorbent and hydride generation atomic fluorescence spectrometry (HGAFS). This method avoids the traditional extraction procedures that are time- and solvent-consuming. The effects of quantity of adsorbent, solution pH, adsorption time and potentially interfering ions were studied. Under the optimal conditions, the detection limit is 3 ngaEuro cent L-1, and the enrichment factor is 167. The calibration plot is linear in the range from 0.05 to 10 mu gaEuro cent L-1, with a correlation coefficient of 0.9992. The relative standard deviation (RSD) was less than 6.1 % (n = 5) and recoveries in spiked environmental water were > 100 %. The method was successfully applied to the determination of total inorganic arsenic in natural water samples.