ABSTRACT
Cyanide amenable to chlorination is performed to determine the amount of cyanide in the sample that would react with chlorine. Not all cyanides in a sample are amenable to chlorination. Calcium hypochlorite, sodium hypochlorite, and chloramine are some of the common chlorinating agents that may be used as a source of chlorine. The chlorination reaction is performed at a pH between 11 and 12. Under such an alkaline condition, the cyanide reacts with chlorine to form cyanogen chloride, a gas at room temperature that escapes out. Cyanide amenable to chlorination is therefore calculated as the total cyanide content initially in the sample minus the total cyanide left in the sample after chlorine treatment. The chlorine-treated sample aliquot is distilled for cyanide analysis using colorimetric, titrimetric, or ion-selective electrode method.
