Determination of hexavalent chromium in wastewater discharge of a tanerry, located in field of Izamba, Ambato in the province of Tungurahua, by atomic absorption

The present study aims to determine chromium (vi) in the final process effluentin a tannery located in izamba - ambato in tungurahua, by atomic absorptions-pectrophotometry. a total of 16 samples were analyzed from the final effluentof the tanning process for a period of four months (May to august, 2009), noti-cing that this period is the most productive of the year. the method EPa # 218.5was used for the separation of cr (vi).the method is based on the separation ofcr (vi) from the sample by coprecipitation of lead chromate with lead sulfatein a solution of acetic acid. after separation, the supernatant is drawn off andthe cr (vi) precipitate is solubilized in nitric acid as trivalent chromium cr (iii)and quantified by atomic absorption. a standard reference material and fortifi-cations were used to guarantee reliability in the results and to ensure their qua-lity. results showed that the concentration of chromium (vi) on the finaleffluentof the tanning processis about 160 mg/l. this exceeds the limits allowedaccording to existing legislation (tulas), which is 0.5 mg/l, (tulas), 2009.Moreover, the results indicate that there is a considerable pollution load in thefinal effluents, which lies above the established limits. accordingly, it is claimed,that it is necessary to implement a treatment plant or a cleaner productionsystem to, thereby, reduce the pollution generated by the leather industry.infoQUIMICA FINAL:Maquetación 1 22/11/13 8:55 Página 8