Potassium environmental application

Molecular probe dyes for the determination of potassium, lithium, and sodium have been identified. Additionally, an NIR probe selective for potassium has been fabricated. The detection limits of this probe are in the ppm range. Lower detection limits may be achieved by varying the matrix which allows the entrapment of ions. Preliminary data for the detection of lead and cadmium demonstrate the potential capability of these probes for environmental applications. The development of OFMP for the detection of other ions of environmental interest such as Be2+, Hg2+, As3+, and Ni2+ is currently underway. 

Some analysts prefer to conduct calcium determinations in a nitrous oxide-acetylene flame to minimize the risk of interferences, and this is a sound practice. However, the element has a low ionization potential, so that an ionization buffer such as 5 mg ml-1 potassium must then be added. The AES determination in this flame is very sensitive, and gives a lower detection limit than flame AAS. However flame AAS is sufficiently sensitive to meet the needs of most environmental applications. Flame AFS is really only of academic interest for calcium determination. 

Discussion. One very important application of potassium dichromate is in a back-titration for the environmental determination16 of the amount of oxygen required to oxidise all the organic material in a sample of impure water, such as sewage effluent. This is known as the chemical oxygen demand (C.O.D.) and is expressed in terms of milligrams of oxygen required per litre of water, mg L l. The analysis of the impure water sample is carried out in parallel with a blank determination on pure, double-distilled water. 

Potassium, phosphoms, calcium, and magnesium concentrations changed with irrigation and fertilization in physiologically mature tubers (Ilin et al., 2002). The total concentration of iron, calcium, and zinc increased with application of fertilizers whereas the content of phosphoms and molybdenum was reduced (Bibak et al., 1999 Frossard et al., 2000). The wide range of mineral content reported in potatoes may not only be due to genotype and environmental factors, but also sampling issues. 

Apart from multi-element analysis employed for large scale studies, single element analysis (e.g., especially of toxic elements such as Cd, Hg, Tl or Pb) is performed in environmental science for special applications. For example, Hg and Tl have been determined in environmental samples by slurry sampling using electrothermal vaporization (ETV) ICP-MS. If potassium permanganate is employed as a modifier in ETV at optimized pyrolysis temperatures of 300 °C for Hg and 500 °C for Tl, detection limits of 0.18p,gg 1 (Hg) and 0.07p,gg 1 (Tl) are obtained.58... 

Mesocarp—fruit ratio is largely genetically determined and is little affected by environmental factors. Fruit—bunch ratio depends mainly on the efficiency of pollination. Oil-mesocarp ratio depends in part on the ripeness of the fruit, since oil is only synthesized during the later stages of fruit development. There is also considerable variation in oil-mesocarp of bunches from the same progeny harvested at different times of the year (23). It has also been shown that application of potassium fertilizer leads to a reduction in the oil-bunch ratio (24) but the increase in fruit yield in response to potassium was more than enough to compensate for the reduced oil-bunch ratio. 

Common ions can be determined at ppb levels, e.g. fluoride, chloride, nitrate, sulfate, sodium, ammonium, and potassium. This is especially important in environmental and industrial applications. Anion and cation analysis can be performed in many types of samples, e.g. groundwater samples, power plant waters, coastal and sea water samples, on air filters, solid waste samples, blood and food and digested rock samples. 

Potassium permanganate has found application m many diffoient fields. In the early eighties, potassium permanganate treatment started to become popular as an odor control method in munic ai sewage plants and collection lin. Simultaneously, it gained importance as an oxidant for the destruction and/or detoxification of a wide variety of environmentally harmful chemicals in industrial waste materials (72). 

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