Determination of copper(II) based on its catalytic effect on thiosemicarbazide–H2O2–CTMAB chemiluminescence reaction

A novel chemiluminescence (CL) reaction, thiosemicarbazide (TSC)–H2O2, for the determination of copper at nanogram per milliliter level in batch type is described. The method is based on the catalytic effect of copper(II) on the oxidation of TSC with hydrogen peroxide to produce light emission. The emitted light was observed by using a conventional fluorescence detector. In the optimum conditions, calibration graph was linear in the range of 0.1–1.3 ppm. The limit of detection was 10 ppb. The relative standard deviation for five determinations of 0.5 ppm copper(II) was 1.93%. The proposed method permitted the selective and sensitive determination of Cu(II) in human hair and wheat flour with sufficient precision. The possible mechanism for the new chemiluminescence reaction was also discussed.