Abstract
A method for the identification of methyl-, ethyl-or phenyl-mercuric compounds of RHgX type by gas chromatographic peak subtraction was studied. The gas chromatographic peaks of RHgX compounds were subtracted by treating the sample solutions before introduction to a gas chromatograph with (a) aqueous solutions of organic thio-compounds, e.g. glutathione, sodium thioglycolic acid, sodium thiosalicylic acid, thiomalic acid, thioglycerole and thiourea, (b) metal sulfides or thiosulfate, e.g. Na2S, CuS, ZnS and Na2S2O3, and (c) metal powders, e.g. Fe, Ni, Al, Zn and Pb in presence of water. The peak subtraction occurred also by inserting a short column of metal powders between chromatographic column and detector.
The peak subtraction by these treatments is specific for RHgX compounds and, by combining each of them, offers a highly reliable method of confirmation of RHgX compounds.
