Nine new hydroxamic acids in conjunction with four pyridylazo reagents were explored for extractive separation and spectrophotometric determination of palladium in environmental samples. It was found that maximum sensitivity and selectivity was achieved by employing N-p-methoxyphenyl-2-furylacrylohydroxamic acid (MFHA) and 5-(diethylamino)-2-(2-pyridylazo) phenol (DEPAP). Palladium was first selectively extracted with MFHA in isoamyl alcohol at pH 2.7-3.5 and the extract was equilibrated with a mixture of 5 M HCl and 10− 3M solution of DEPAP in ethanol. The resulting intensely green ternary complex was measured at 560 nm (σ 5.1 × 104l mole−1cm−1). The extraction system is suitable for enrichment of palladium over 15 times without loss in recovery and enables determination of palladium at levels as low as 10−4ppm (0.1 ppb). The method tolerates the presence of a large number of diverse ions normally associated with palladium, including platinum metals, and was employed for the determination of palladium in standard catalysts, biological materials, and freshwaters.