Selective determination of beryllium(II) ion at picomole per decimeter cubed levels by kinetic differentiation mode reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography with fluorometric detection using 2-(2'-hydroxyphenyl)-10-hydroxybenzo[H]quinoline as precolumn chelating reagent

A highly sensitive and selective method for the determination of the Be(II) ion has been developed by the use of reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with fluorometric detection using 2-(2'-hydroxyphenyl)-10-hydroxybenzoh]quinoline (HPHBQ) as a precolumn (off-line) chelating reagent. The reagent HPHBQ has been designed to form the kinetically inert Be chelate compatible with high fluorescence yield, which is appropriate to the HPLC-fluorometric detection system. The Be-HPHBQ chelate is efficiently separated on a LiChrospher 100 RP-18(e) column with a methanol (58.3 wt %)-water eluent containing 20 mmol kg(-1) of tartaric acid and is fluorometrically detected at 520 nm with the excitation at 420 nm. Under the conditions used, the concentration range of 20-8,000 pmol dm(-3) of Be(II) ion can be determined without interferences from 10 micromol dm(-3) each of common metal ions, typically Al(III), Cu(II), Fe(III), and Zn(II), and still more coexistence of Ca(II) and Mg(II) ions at 0.50 mmol dm(-3) and 5.0 mmol dm(-3), respectively, is tolerated. The detection limit (3a baseline fluctuation) is 4.3 pmol dm(-3) (39 fg cm(-3)). The extraordinarily high sensitivity with toughness toward the matrix influence was demonstrated with the successful application to environmental Be analyses, such as determination of Be in rainwater and tap water.