Cloud point extraction assisted mass spectrometric determination of ultra trace level cadmium in environmental aqueous samples

Cadmium (Cd) is a toxic heavy element which is being largely used in nuclear industry as a control rod material and one of the base components of solar panels. Their unsafe disposal, accidental release or mishandling may lead to serious environmental contamination. The WHO has recommended 3 ng mL-1 as the maximum tolerance limit of Cd in drinking water. The presence of diverse concentrations of innumerable elements in environmental samples makes direct mass spectrometric determination of ultra-trace amounts of Cd a difficult task. In this work cloud point extraction (CPE) of Cd from other elements was carried out using 8-hydroxyquinoline (8-HQ) dispersed Triton X-114 micelle phase. Various CPE parameters like pH, ligand and surfactant concentrations, and extraction and phase separation temperatures were cross optimized to obtain quantitative recovery using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer (ICP-MS)