Observations on the behaviour of some trifluoroacetophenone derivatives as neutral carriers for carbonate ion-selective electrodes

Abstract

Properties of three derivatives of trifluoacetophenone [4-(n-butyl)-1-trifluoroacetylbenzene (BTFAB), 4-(n-hexadecyl)-1-trifluoroacetylbenzene (HDTFAB), p-dodecyloxytrifluoroacetylbenzene (DDTFAB)] as neutral carriers for carbonate were examined. The best electrode characteristic (slope, S= 29 mV decade^–1, lowest detection limit) was for HDTFAB. The sensitivity towards carbonates was for DDTFAB pH dependent. This eliminates DDTFAB from practical applications. A theoretical treatment concerning carbonate and hydrogencarbonate selectivity under investigated conditions has been performed. Preliminary determination of carbonate in bovine serum was made using electrodes with HDTFAB.