Determination of trace total sulfur in organic compounds by Raney nickel reduction with voltammetric detection Original Research Article

A sensitive and precise method for the determination of total sulfur in organic compounds was described. Here, organosulfur compounds were desulfurized by Raney nickel and converted to H2S. Square-wave voltammetry (SWV) and differential pulse cathodic stripping voltammetry (DPCSV) on a static mercury drop electrode (SMDE) were used for the detection of sulfide ion. The effects of various factors such as scan rate, deposition potential and time, pulse height and concentration of supporting electrolyte were optimized. The 3σ detection limits were 2 and 25 ng S ml−1 for DPCSV and SWV, respectively. At 1 μg S ml−1 in iso-octane the relative standard deviations (n = 5) are ±1.7% and ±4.5% for SWV and DPCSV, respectively.