Separation and determination of copper in bottled water samples by combination of dispersive liquid--liquid microextraction and microsample introduction flame atomic absorption spectrometry.

A new and simple method for the determination of trace amounts of Cu(II) was developed by combination of dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction (DLLME) preconcentration and microsample introduction flame atomic absorption spectrometry. In this method, ethanol and chloroform were chosen as disperser and extraction solvents, respectively, and 1-nitroso-2-naphthol was used as the complexing agent. The factors affecting the extraction efficiency and determination of Cu(II), including extraction and disperser solvent nature and volume, concentration of the complexing agent, pH of the solution, extraction time, and matrix ions, were investigated. Under optimal conditions, the LOD for Cu(II) was 0.95 microg/L with a preconcentration factor of 70. The RSD was 1.9%. The accuracy of the developed DLLME method was verified by determination of Cu(II) in a certified reference material (NRCC-SLRS-4 river water). The relative error was -3.31%. The developed preconcentration procedure was successfully applied to the analysis of bottled drinking water samples.