Simultaneous determination of nickel, cobalt, antimony, and arsenic in an aqueous sample by differential pulse polarography

A description is made of determination of Ni (II), Co (II), Sb (III), and As (V) in a mining aqueous sample with complex chemical composition by differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) at a static mercury drop electrode (SMDE). The analyzed sample contained a high concentration of alkaline earth cations (M2-) and pH buffer, thus direct determination was not possible and M2- had to be eliminated. The content of the species could be determined after this sample treatment. The versatility of the polarographic technique for detecting and quantifying major and minor components in the same sample was demonstrated. despite the near peak potentials of the analyzed species.