Fast Determination of a Novel Iron Chelate Prototype Used as a Fertilizer by Liquid Chromatography Coupled to a Diode Array Detector

The environmental risk of the application of synthetic chelates has favored the implementation of new biodegradable ligands to correct Fe-deficient plants. This study developed and validated an analytical method for determination of a new prototype iron chelate-Fe(III)-benzeneacetate, 2-hydroxy-alpha-[(2-hydroxyethyl)amino]-(BHH/Fe3+) based on liquid chromatography with diode array detection, as a potential sustainable alternative. Chromatographic analysis was performed on a LiChrospher RP-18 in reverse-phase mode, with a mobile phase consisting of a mixture of acetonitrile (solvent A) and sodium borate buffer 0.20 mM at pH = 8 (solvent B) at a flow rate of 1.0 mL/min in isocratic elution mode. This method was fully validated and found to be linear from the limit of quantification (LOQ) to 50 mg/L and precise (standard deviation below 5%). The proposed method was demonstrated to be selective, precise, and robust. The developed methodology indicated that it is suitable for the quantification of iron chelate BHH/Fe3+.

Automated summary

A new prototype iron chelate was developed and validated using liquid chromatography, showing that the analytical method is suitable for quantification of the iron chelate. The method was found to be selective, precise, and robust for this purpose.