Separation and enrichment of gold in water, geological and environmental samples by solid phase extraction on multiwalled carbon nanotubes prior to its determination by flame atomic absorption spectrometry

This study proposes the application of multi-walled carbon nanotubes as a solid sorbent for the preconcentration of gold prior to its flame atomic absorption spectrometry determination. Extraction was achieved by using a glass column (15.0 cm in length and 1.0 cm in diameter). Quantitative recoveries were obtained in the pH range of 2.5-4.0; the elution step was carried out with 5.0 ml of 1.0 mol/L HNO3 in acetone. In the ligand-free study, variables such as pH, eluent type, sample volume, flow rates, and matrix effect were examined for the optimum recovery of gold ions. The gold ions were able to be pre-concentrated by a factor of 150 and their LOD was determined to be 1.71 μg/L. In order to evaluate the accuracy of the developed method, addition-recovery tests were applied for the tap water, mineral water, and sea water samples. Gold recovery studies were implemented using a wet digestion technique for mine and soil samples taken from various media, and this method was also applied for anodic slime samples taken from the factories located in the Kayseri Industrial Zone of Turkey.