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BSTRACT Sediments were equilibrated with solutions containing divalent copper ion. A colorimetric method using the triethylenete-tramine complex of the metal ion was employed to measure changes in uptake of copper by the sediments. Studies were made with sediments from rivers in the British Isles which were in the proximity of areas which had been mined for metals for several hundred years. For comparison, similar studies were performed with a sample of sand and a soil with a high organic content. It was possible to follow the uptake of copper ion by the materials and estimate their abilities to adsorb copper ion. In particular, a strong correlation was observed between the organic content of the sediment and the total amount of copper adsorbed by the sample. Under the employed circumstances it was possible to demonstrate that the adsorption of the metal ion was reversible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BSTRACT Trace quantities of copper (II) ion can be found in natural water as waste products from industrial, mining, and agricultural operations. Because low concentrations of copper can be toxic to plant life, many workers have devised methods of analysis for this metal in water. These methods require expensive equipment and skilled technicians. The described study illustrates a simple method in which copper (II) ion is concentrated by a batch ion exchange technique and estimated colorimetrically after formation of the blue triethylenetetramine complex. Using the visible absorption peak of the complex at 600 nm it was possible to obtain accurate estimations of original copper concentrations in the range 0.5-3 ppm. Using the complex absorption peak at 260 nm in the ultra-violet region of the spectrum increased the sensitivity by a factor of twenty. Because of the dependence of the complex formation reaction on solution acidity it is possible to optimize conditions for the detection of copper (II) in the presence of other metal ions. This type of method, which could be extended to the analysis of other metal ions, could be performed by a relatively unskilled technician under field conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]