PURITY TESTS
Reagents: Hydrochloric acid, hydrazinium sulfate, standard selenium solution (100µg Se/ml)

Procedure

Weigh 2.0 ± 0.1 g of sample and transfer to a 50-ml beaker. Add 10 ml water, 5 ml hydrochloric acid and boil to remove SO2.
Into a second beaker, weigh 1.0 ± 0.1 g of sample, add 0.05 ml standard selenium solution and proceed as above.
To each beaker add 2 g hydrazinium sulfate and warm to dissolve. Let stand for 5 min. Dilute the contents of each beaker to 50 ml in a Nessler tube and compare the colour of the two solutions. The sample should be less pink than the sample with the added standard.

METHOD OF ASSAY

Weigh 0.2 g of the sample to the nearest mg, add to 50.0 ml of 0.1 N iodine in a glass-stoppered flask, and stopper the flask. Allow to stand for 5 min, add 1 ml of hydrochloric acid, and titrate the excess iodine with 0.1 N sodium thiosulfate, adding starch TS as the indicator. Each ml of 0.1 N iodine is equivalent to 4.753 mg of Na2S2O5.