Use of ammonium molybdate in the colorimetric assay of cephalosporins.

A colorimetric method for the determination of five cephalosporins (cefoxitin sodium, cefotaxime sodium, cephapirin sodium, cephalothin sodium and cephaloridine), based on the blue colour formed by reaction of the cephalosporins with ammonium molybdate, is described. The effects of reagent concentration and reaction conditions are discussed. The proposed method has been applied to the analysis of cephalosporin injections, the results of which are in good agreement with those obtained by the official method of the British Pharmacopoeia.