Principles and applications of colorimetric solid-phase extraction with negligible depletion Original Research Article

Colorimetric solid-phase extraction (C-SPE) is an integrated technique in which an analyte is selectively concentrated onto a disk and then quantitated by diffuse reflectance spectroscopy. This paper describes the results of an investigation that applies the concept of negligible depletion (ND) to C-SPE, representing the first application of ND concepts to solid-phase extractions. The approach relies on passing the minimal volume of sample through the disk required to reach an equilibrium in which the concentration of analyte in the sample entering and exiting the disk are equal. At this point, the amount of analyte extracted by the disk is proportional to the sample concentration but is independent of the sample volume passed through the disk. With this new method, called C-SPE/ND, the precise measurement of sample volume is no longer necessary. The work herein details the general principles of this new methodology, and validates its basic tenets in an investigation of the extraction of the organic dye methyl violet. The analytical capabilities of C-SPE/ND are then demonstrated by its application to measurements of iodine. Iodine is a biocide increasingly used as a simple and effective disinfectant for water in locations where municipal water treatment systems are potentially compromised. Thus, the ability to operate C-SPE in an ND mode notably enhances the broad-based utility of this methodology as a reliable and an easy-to-use analysis tool for water quality assessments. Since iodine is also the biocide used on NASAs Space Shuttle, C-SPE/ND has the potential to overcome problems associated with the removal of air bubbles entrapped in a water sample in the microgravity environment encountered in space exploration. Extensions of C-SPE/ND to facile determinations of other water quality parameters with respect to both earth- and space-based needs are briefly discussed.