Abstract
The potentiometric response characteristics of electrodes based on
N,
N′-bis(acetylacetone)ethylenediimine (
I) in poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) combined with an anion localizing agent (sodium tetraphenyl borate, NaTPB) and solvent mediators, viz.
o-nitrophenyl octyl ether (NPOE), dibutyl (butyl) phosphonate (DBBP), tri-
n-butyl phosphate (TBP) and chloronaphthalene (CN) were investigated. The best result for Zn
2+-sensing was obtained for the electrode membrane of the composition of
I:PVC:NaTPB:NPOE
=
5:100:6:200, where the electrode had a Nernstian response (30.0
mV/decade of Zn
2+ activity) to Zn
2+ within the concentration range of 1.0
×
10
−6 to 1.0
×
10
−1
M. The operational pH range of the electrode was 3.2–7.1. Selectivity characteristic of the proposed electrode was also assessed by calculating
K
A
,
B
Pot
with a fixed interference method. The sensor has been successfully used in real sample analysis and also in the potentiometric titration of zinc ions with EDTA.