[Preconcentration of trace chromium in natural water with activated carbon and its determination by colorimetry].

The adsorption and desorption behavior of chromium was studied. Trace chromium in water could be adsorbed on activated carbon at pH 9-10, then eluted with 0.5% sulfuric acid and determined by colorimetry. The content of chromium could be concentrated by 100 times. For sample, the coefficient of variation of 8 parallel determinations was 7.7%. The proposed method has been applied to the determination of trace chromium in natural waters with the recovery of 71.4%-90.0%, and with the detection limit of 0.04 microgram/L.