Fluorometric determination of formaldehyde

A simple, selective and sensitive fluorometric method is presented for the determination of formaldehyde in water based on its reaction with 3,4-diaminoanisole in alkaline ethanol-water solution to give a strongly fluorescing Schiff base. The dependence of the fluorescence intensity on the solvent composition, quenching by acetic and sulphuric acid, heating time and interference by other compounds is discussed. The detection limit of the method is 0.6 mu g/L. The recovery of formaldehyde spiked into river water is 93% with an R.S.D of 6.05% at a concentration level of 10 mu g/L.