Measurement of Complex Formation Process of Nickel (II) with Freshwater Fulvic Acids Using the Solubility Method

Abstract

The complex formation process between Ni(II) and fulvic acids has been studied through the solubility method at pH = 9.0. The old suspension of Ni(OH)₂ is used as a solid phase. Fulvic acids are isolated from Paravani lake by the adsorption-chromatographic method. The activated charcoal is used as a sorbent. The concentration of fulvic acids in model solutions changes from 1.1 × 10^-5 mol/L to 4.4 × 10^-5 mol/L. The value of molar mass of fulvic acids at pH = 9.0 was taken into consideration for the calculation of molar concentrations of fulvic acids. Before adding the ligand the initial concentration of nickel was 3.8 × 10^-6 mol/L. This article has shown that, during complex formation process every 0.25 part of an associate of fulvic acids (Mw = 7610), inculcates into nickel's inner coordination sphere as an integral ligand, so it may be assumed, that the average molecular weight of the associate of fulvic acids which takes part in complex formation process equals to 1903. This part of the associate of fulvic acids was conventionally called the "active associate". The average molecular weight of the "active associate" was used for determining the concentration of free ligand and average stability constant (1:1), which equals to β = 1.07 × 10⁷ (lgβ = 7.03).