Extraction and voltammetric determination of copper, lead, cadmium and zinc in iron ore samples

Abstract

A simple, rapid and precise method of determining heavy metals (copper, lead, cadmium and zinc) in iron ores using differential-pulse anodic-stripping voltammetry (DPASV) is proposed. The sample is digested with concentrated hydrochloric acid and iron is removed by extraction with diethyl ether. The aqueous acidic extract is subjected to voltammetry. Recoveries for these four metals range from 93.5 to 101.0%. The relative standard deviations for copper, lead, cadmium and zinc are 0.72, 0.48, 0.64 and 0.47%, respectively. The critical value of |t| at the 95% confidence level indicates that there is no systematic error in the proposed method.