Simultaneous determination of ammonium, nitrate and nitrite in wastewater by means of direct potentiometry

Nitrogen is one of the most commonly occurring elements in nature and forms many inorganic ionic species, such are ammonium, nitrate and nitrite ions, being most important. The simultaneous determination of ammonium, nitrate and nitrite ions in water, food, biological and environmental matrices is of vital significance due to their toxicity to humans (infants) and water systems (eutrophication). Ion–selective electrodes (ISE) are a promising approach because of their small size, rapid response, and ability to directly measure the analyte. In this study the simultaneous determination of ammonium, nitrate and nitrite ions was performed in modelled and real systems (wastewater) using commercial ISE (ELIT, NICO2000 Ltd.).