Silver ion-selective electrodes based on bis(dialkyldithiocarbamates) as neutral ionophores

Silver ion-selective electrodes (ISEs) have been prepared by incorporating six new bis(dialkyldithiocarbamates) as the neutral ionophores into the plasticized PVC membranes. The construction, response characteristic and application of the silver ISEs are investigated. The better results have been obtained with membranes containing ligands L3–L6 with dibutyl phthalate (DBP) as a plasticizer. These electrodes work well over a wide range of concentration (1.0 × 10−6 to 1.0 × 10−3 M) with Nernstian slopes. The present silver ISEs display very good selectivity for Ag+ ions against an interferent, Hg2+ ion, and the values are around −3.0. The silver ISEs have been used as indicator electrodes for potentiometric titration of Cl− ions in Vitamin B1 tablets using a standard solution of AgNO3. The proposed electrodes have also been used for the direct determination of silver ions in water samples.