Determination of trace levels of ammonia in marine waters using a simple environmentally-friendly ammonia (SEA) analyser

Abstract

A simple environmentally-friendly ammonia (SEA) analyser based on programmable flow was developed for the determination of trace levels of ammonia nitrogen in marine waters. The proposed SEA analyser was based on a gas-diffusion spectrophotometric method. High sensitivity was achieved through the use of large sample volumes and a programmable-flow approach. The degree of pre-concentration of ammonia in the acceptor stream was determined by the controlled and programmable delivery of the sample to the gas-diffusion unit, and the sensitivity of the method was tailored to the concentration range of interest by simple modification of the sample volume used for analysis. Three different working c..