The analytical separation of phosphate from natural water by ion exchange

An ion exchange method has been developed for separating inorganic orthophosphate from natural water samples. The technique makes it possible to determine orthophosphate by the molybdophosphate blue procedure without interference from phosphate esters or certain other forms of bound phosphorus. Experiments to examine the conditions under which phosphate is found in natural waters suggest that adsorption by high molecular weight organic substances such as lignins may account for a large fraction of the soluble phosphorus.