7,7,8,8-tetracyanoquinodimethane chemiluminescence sensitized by Rhodamine B on surfactant bilayer membrane assemblies for determination of sulphide by a flow-injection method.

A new chemiluminescence system is described for selective determination of sulphide by a flow-injection method. The weak light emitted from the reaction between 7,7,8,8-tetracyanoquinodimethane and sulphide is efficiently sensitized by Rhodamine B in alkaline solution containing dioctadecyldimethylammonium chloride bilayer membrane aggregates and acetonitrile. The limit of determination is 0.05 ng (injection of 30 mul of 5 x 10(-8)M sulphide), the linear range is two orders of magnitude, the sampling rate is 240/hr, and the relative standard deviation is 3.0% for 0.3 ng of sulphide. Manganese(II), the strongest enhancing species after sulphide ion, provides a signal 1.1% of that for sulphide ion. Manganese(II), iron(II), and species forming precipitates with sulphide ion interfere, but other sulphur anions such as sulphite, sulphate, thiosulphate, and thiocyanate do not.