Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Determination Of Nitrate In Aqueous Media, Ebony Arauz Tellez, John Bohannon, Rebecca Mills, Virginia Tam, Isabelle Villarreal, Melissa C. Rhoten

Spring Showcase for Research and Creative Inquiry

Determining the amount of inorganic ions in aqueous media is important in the food industry and environmentally. In the environment high levels of ions like nitrate (NO₃^-), nitrite (NO2^-), and phosphate (PO₄^3-) can lead to unhealthy conditions for aquatic species. Similarly, high levels of nitrate and nitrite can cause health issues in humans. One method for determining nitrate levels in aqueous samples involves reducing the nitrate species to nitrite via a redox reaction with finely divided zinc powder followed by conversion to a diazonium salt and complexation with 1-napthylamine to form a …