Development of a gas phase chemiluminescence system for the measurement of arsenic in drinking water

Abstract

A simple gas-phase chemiluminescence (GPCL) technique has been developed for routine measurement of inorganic arsenic in water samples. The internal hydrogen pressure generated in the cell was used to reproducibly transfer arsine into a chemiluminescence (CL) reaction cell to react with ozone. This instrument setup reduces a major component from the system and reduces cost. The technique is optimized and calibrated from 0–300 μg L⁻¹ (ppb) of total inorganic arsenic with a limit of detection (LOD) of 0.4 μg L⁻¹ and a sample throughput of 20 samples per hour without sampling automation. The technique is validated against HGAFS, ICPAES, ASV, and arsenic kit using certified standards and extensively used for groundwater sample analysis. The response of the instrument was mathematically modeled for a better understanding of the analytical process.