Improved separate solution method for determination of low selectivity coefficients.

Simple, fast, and theoretically substantiated experimental method for determination of improved selectivity coefficients is proposed. The method is based on the well-known fact that low selectivity coefficients determined by the separate solution method (SSM) are time-dependent and, upon our finding, this dependence is a well-defined linear function of time raised to the certain negative power. In particular, the selectivity coefficients obtained for equally charged primary and foreign ions by SSM linearly depend on time to the minus one-fourth. It was found that extrapolation of experimental data using this function to the intersection with Y axes gives reliable values of rather low selectivity coefficients (down to n × 10(-7)), which strongly differ from those measured using SSM and correspond well with the values obtained using the modified separate solution method (MSSM) proposed by Bakker. At the same time, the new method is free of one very essential limitation inherent to MSSM, namely, it is applicable after the conditioning of electrodes in the primary ion solution and can be repeated many times.