Determination of nitrite, nitrate, bromide, and iodide in seawater by ion chromatography with UV detection using dilauryldimethylammonium-coated monolithic ODS columns and sodium chloride as an eluent.

A method was developed for determination of inorganic anions, including nitrite (NO(2)(-)), nitrate (NO(3)(-)), bromide (Br(-)), and iodide (I(-)), in seawater by ion chromatography (IC). The IC system used two dilauryldimethylammonium bromide (DDAB)-coated monolithic ODS columns (50 × 4.6 mm i.d. and 100 × 4.6 mm i.d.) connected in series for separation of the ions. Aqueous NaCl (0.5 mol/L; flow rate, 3 mL/min) containing 5 mmol/L phosphate buffer (pH 5) was used as the eluent, and detection was with a UV detector at 225 nm. The monolithic ODS columns were coated and equilibrated with a 1-mmol/L DDAB solution (in H(2)O/methanol, 90:10 v/v). The hydrophilic ions (NO(2)(-), NO(3)(-), and Br(-)) were separated within 3 min and the retention time of I(-) was 16 min. No interferences from matrix ions, such as chloride and sulfate ions, were observed in 35 ‰ artificial seawater. The detection limits were 0.6 μg/L for NO(2)(-), 1.1 μg/L for NO(3)(-), 70 μg/L for Br(-), and 1.6 μg/L for I(-) with a 200-μL sample injection. The performance of the coated columns was maintained without addition of DDAB in the eluent. The IC system was successfully applied to real seawater samples with recovery rates of 94-108 % for all ions.