Simultaneous determination of lead(II) and cadmium(II) at a diacetyldioxime modified carbon paste electrode by differential pulse stripping voltammetry

A simple and effective chemically modified carbon paste electrode (CMCPE) for the simultaneous determination of lead(II) and cadmium(II) was developed in this work. The electrode was prepared by the addition of diacetyldioxime into a carbon paste mixture. Pb2+ and Cd2+ were preconcentrated on the surface of the modified electrode by complexing with diacetyldioxime and reduced at a negative potential (−1.10 V). Then the reduced products were oxidized by differential pulse stripping. The fact that two stripping peaks appeared on the voltammograms at the potentials of −0.65 V (Cd2+) and −0.91 V (Pb2+) demonstrates the possibility of simultaneous determination of Pb2+ and Cd2+. Under the optimized working conditions, calibration graphs were linear in the concentration ranges of 1.0×10−7–1.5×10−5 mol l−1 (Pb2+) and 2.5×10−7–2.5×10−5 mol l−1 (Cd2+), respectively. For 5 min preconcentration, detection limits of 1×10−8 mol l−1 (Pb2+) and 4×10−8 mol l−1 (Cd2+) were obtained at the signal noise ratio (SNR) of 3. To evaluate the reproducibility of the newly developed electrode, the measurements of 5×10−7 mol l−1 Pb2+ and Cd2+ were parallel carried out for six times at different electrodes and the relative standard deviations were 2.9% (Pb2+) and 3.2% (Cd2+), respectively. Interferences by some metals were investigated. Only Ni2+ and Hg2+ apparently affected the peak currents of Pb2+ and Cd2+. The diacetyldioxime modified carbon paste electrode was applied to the determination of Pb2+ and Cd2+ in water samples. The results indicate that this electrode is sensitive and effective for the simultaneous determination of Pb2+ and Cd2+.