Improvement of 31P NMR Spectral Resolution by 8-Hydroxyquinoline Precipitation of Paramagnetic Fe and Mn in Environmental Samples

Solution P-31 nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy is currently the main method for the characterization of phosphorus (P) forms in environment samples. However, identification and quantification of P compounds may be hampered by poor resolution of spectra caused by paramagnetic Fe and Mn. In this study, a novel technique was developed to improve spectral resolution by removing paramagnetic Fe and Mn from alkaline extracts via 8-hydroxyquinoline (8-HOQ) precipitation. Batch experiments showed that both Fe and Mn were effectively removed by the precipitation at pH 9.0, with the removal efficiencies of 83-91% for Fe and 67-78% for Mn from the extracts of five different environmental samples, while little effect was found on concentration of total P. The P-31 NMR analysis of a model P solution showed that addition of 8-HOQ. and its precipitation with metal ions did not alter P forms. Further analyses of the five extracts with P-31 NMR spectroscopy demonstrated that the 8-HOQ precipitation was an ideal method compared with the present postextraction techniques, such as bicarbonate dithionate (BD), EDTA and Chelex-100 treatments, by improving spectral resolution to a large extent with no detrimental effects on P forms.