Spectrophotometric determination of strychnine and methylatropine by extraction with tetrabromophenolphthalein ethyl ester.

A new application of monoacidic dyes is reported for the determination of strychnine and methylatropine. The method is based on solvent extraction into 1,2-dichloroethane of the ion-pair or addition compound formed between tetrabromophenolphthalein ethyl ester and quaternary ammonium salts or alkaloids. The absorbance of the extracts is linearly dependent on the concentration of strychnine or methylatropine initially present in the aqueous solution.