Ammonia aquarium

This experiment describes a semester-long project in which the concentration of several ions in a fresh water aquarium are monitored. Ions that are monitored using potentiometric electrodes include H+ (pH electrode), Gh (chloride electrode), HG03 (GO2 electrode), NH4+ (NH3 electrode), and N03 (NH3 electrode). Nitrate concentrations were determined following its conversion to ammonia. 

A term for the material under investigation is bulk system. The bulk system in the case of analyzing toothpaste for fluoride is the toothpaste in the tube. The bulk system in the case of determining the ammonia level in the water in an aquarium is all the water in the aquarium. 

E. Box 6-1 discussed nitrogen species found in a saltwater aquarium. Now we consider the measurement of ammonia in the fishtank, using an ammonia-selective compound electrode. The procedure is to mix 100.0 mL of unknown or standard... 

Box 6-1 stated that nitrogen compounds derived from animals and plants are broken down to ammonia hetm>trophic bacteria. Ammonia is oxidized first to nitrite 02 ) and then to nitrate (NO J) by nitrifying bacteria. In Section 6-3 we saw how a permanganate titration was used to standardize a nitrite stock solution. The nitrite solution is used here to pr xue standards for a spectrophotometric analysis of nitrite in aquarium water. 

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