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Ion-selective electrode measurements of copper(II) activity in contaminated soils

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Abstract

A method is presented for the use of a cupric ionselective electrode to determine the free copper activity in 0.01 M CaCl2 soil solution extracts. Ionic strength variations and the presence of aluminum caused no significant interferences. The method was applied to 18 soils with wide-ranging copper levels. The pCu2+ varied between 6.33 and 12.20. Acidic soils have a very high cupric ion activity even though they are not considered to be contaminated with copper. Soils considered contaminated with respect to total copper also have free pCu2+ activities below 10, which is close to the toxicity threshold determined in aquatic ecotoxicological studies. All mineral soils have free copper activities close to or below the values expected from pH-dependent soil equilibration studies.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Environmental Chemistry Research Laboratory, Department of Natural Resource Sciences, McGill University-Macdonald Campus, H9X 3V9, Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue, Québec, Canada

    S. Sauvé & W. H. Hendershot

  2. Department of Soil, Crop and Atmospheric Sciences, Cornell University, 14853, Ithaca, New York, USA

    S. Sauvé & M. B. McBride

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  1. S. Sauvé
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  2. M. B. McBride
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  3. W. H. Hendershot
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Sauvé, S., McBride, M.B. & Hendershot, W.H. Ion-selective electrode measurements of copper(II) activity in contaminated soils. Arch. Environ. Contam. Toxicol. 29, 373–379 (1995). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00212503

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00212503

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