PVC membrane electrode based on triheptyl dodecyl ammonium iodide for the selective determination of molybdate(VI)

Novel polyvinyl chloride (PVC) membrane electrodes based on triheptyl dodecyl ammonium iodide have been developed. In the presence of 12.5 mM H(2)O(2), these electrodes are capable of determining molybdate(VI) ion. The electrodes exhibit near-Nernstian responses over a wide concentration range (2.0 x 10(-6) to 5.0 x 10(-3) M). The proposed electrodes demonstrate satisfying selectivity for molybdate(VI) ion in the presence of a wide variety of anions other than iodide, and can be used in the pH range 5.0-7.0. Moreover, the electrodes show an average response time of 2-3 min and can be used over a period of 2 months without any significant deviation being observed. In the light of our results, the response mechanism of the electrode is discussed and HMoO(2)(O(2))(2)(-) is suggested as the response ion. The proposed electrode has been used to measure molybdenum in ore samples, and the results were in agreement with those obtained by means of ICP analysis.