Flow injection chemiluminescence determination of imipramine in tablets, human plasma and urine samples based upon oxidation with singlet oxygen generated in N-bromosuccinimide-hydrogen peroxide reaction.

Singlet oxygen generated in a reaction between N-bromosuccinimide and hydrogen peroxide was used for the chemiluminescence oxidation of imipramine. A strong chemiluminescence signal was observed when imipramine was mixed with N-bromosuccinimide and hydrogen peroxide under an alkaline condition. The chemiluminescence signal was linearly dependent on the concentration of imipramine in the range of 0.01 - 1.0 mg/L. The detection limit was 0.005 mg/L imipramine and the relative standard deviation was 1.5% for a 0.4 mg/L imipramine solution in 11 repeated measurements. The proposed method was successfully applied to the determination of imipramine in tablets, human plasma and urine samples.