Determination of trace rare earth elements by X-ray fluorescence spectrometry after preconcentration on a new chelating resin loaded with thorin.

A very stable chelating resin was prepared by adsorption of (o-[3,6-disulfo-2-hidroxy-1-naphthylazo]-benzenearsonic acid) (thorin) on a macroporous resin Amberlite XAD-7. The optimal conditions for preparing it were obtained through the study of the adsorption properties of the resin and the thermodynamic quantities of the adsorption processes. Likewise, the behavior of the loaded resin with the rare earth elements (REE) were studied (pH of retention, sorption kinetics, etc). The conditions to prepare a thin film with this system were also evaluated. The loaded resin was successfully used for the separation and preconcentration of Sm(III), Eu(III) and Gd(III) prior to their determination by X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectrometry. The preconcentration factor obtained was 500 and the concentrations at low detection limit were 13.8, 17 and 15.7 microg l(-1) for Sm, Eu and Gd, respectively.