Simultaneous multielement determination of trace metals in seawater by inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry using chelating resin column preconcentration

Preconcentration of trace metals in seawater using a Chelex-100 resin column was investigated for simultaneous determination by inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry (ICP-AES). The optimum preconcentration conditions were examined in detail. With 100 ml of 1 M ammonium acetate buffer solution (1 M=l mol dm^-3), the matrix elements in seawater could be removed sufficiently without loss of analytes. The concentration factor of 200 times could be achieved by dissolving the dried HNO₃ eluent of the column. The blanks of the method were negligibly small for most elements investigated. The detection limits were in the range of several ng/1 to 100ng/l for Al, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Mo, Ni, Pb, Ti, V, and Zn. The present technique was applied to the determination of trace metals in coastal and ocean seawater.