Atomic absorption spectrophotometric determination of microgram quantities of copper in tea after solvent extraction

An atomic absorption spectrophotometric method is described for determining trace amounts of copper in tea. The method is based on the solvent extraction of the metal as tetraiodocuprate (I), from 2 M HCl solutions of tea samples which contain 12% (w/v) KI, into methylisobutyl ketone. The organic extracts, containing the ion-association complex of copper are atomized into an air-acetylene flame. The limit of detection is 1.14 micrograms g-1 Cu.