Determination of gallium at trace levels using a spectrofluorimetric method in synthetic u-ga and ga-as solutions

Abstract

A simple, easy to use and selective spectrofluorimetric method for the determination of trace levels of gallium has been developed. A new Schiff base, N-o-vanillidine-2-amino-p-cresol (OVAC) was synthesized and its fluorescence activity with gallium investigated. Based on this chelation reaction, a spectrofluorimetric method has been developed for the determination of gallium in synthetically prepared Ga-U and Ga-As samples buffered at pH 4.0 using acetic acid-sodium acetate. The chelation reaction between Ga(III) and N-o-vanillidine-2-amino-p-cresol was very fast, requiring only 30 min at room temperature to complex completely. The limit of detection (LOD) (3 sigma) for Ga(III) was 7.17 nM (0.50 mu g L(-1)), determined from the analysis of 11 different solutions of 20 mu g L(-1) Ga(III).