Accepted Manuscript

Title: Functionalized Silver Nanoparticles as Chemosensor for

pH, Hg2+ and Fe3+ in Aqueous Medium

Author: <ce:author id="aut0005" biographyid="vt0005">

Shilpa Bothra<ce:author id="aut0010"
biographyid="vt0010"> Jignasa N. Solanki<ce:author
id="aut0015" biographyid="vt0015"> Suban K. Sahoo

PII: S0925-4005(13)00917-9
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/doi:10.1016/j.snb.2013.07.111
Reference: SNB 15803

To appear in: Sensors and Actuators B

Received date: 16-3-2013

Revised date: 26-7-2013
Accepted date: 30-7-2013

Please cite this article as: S. Bothra, J.N. Solanki, S.K. Sahoo, Functionalized Silver
Nanoparticles as Chemosensor for pH, Hg2+ and Fe3+ in Aqueous Medium, Sensors
and Actuators B: Chemical (2013), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.snb.2013.07.111

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Functionalized Silver Nanoparticles as Chemosensor for pH, Hg2+ and Fe3+

in Aqueous Medium

Shilpa Bothraa, Jignasa N. Solankib, Suban K Sahooa,*

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a
Department of Applied Chemistry, SV National Institute of Technology (SVNIT), Surat-

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395007, India.

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b
Department of Chemical Engineering, SV National Institute of Technology (SVNIT), Surat-

395007, India

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*Corresponding author (Dr SK Sahoo): E-mail:suban_sahoo@rediffmail.com; Tel.: +91-261-
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2201814.
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Abstract

A novel p-phenylenediamine (p-PDA) functionalized silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) was

applied for the detection of metal ions in aqueous medium. This system showed a visually

detectable color change from brownish-yellow to colorless for the selective detection of

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highly toxic Hg2+. However, the surface plasmon resonance (SPR) absorption band of AgNPs

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at 411 nm was disappeared with the addition of both Hg2+ and Fe3+ ions due to the

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aggregation of nanoparticles. Also, this system showed excellent selectivity for Hg2+ and Fe3+

ions over other interfering metal ions including Cu2+, Ni2+, Co2+, Pb2+, Cd2+, Ba2+, Mn2+,

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Mg2+, Fe2+, Al3+ and Zn2+. The developed system is simple and sensitive to detect Hg2+ and

Fe3+ ions with a detection limit down to 0.80 M and 1.29 M, respectively. Furthermore,

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this system can also be used as a colorimetric sensor for the detection of low pH.
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Keywords: Capped AgNPs, Colorimetric, Spectrophotometric, pH, Hg2+, Fe3+
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1. Introduction

Metal nanoparticles are of great fundamental and industrial interest in the field of

nanoscience and nanotechnology because of their unique physicochemical properties. Metal

nanoparticles are often used in catalysis, biology, optoelectronics, mechanics, drug delivery,

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chemical sensors, energy conversion, surface enhanced fluorescence, and surface enhanced

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Raman scattering [1-12]. Among the various nanoparticles systems, the optical properties of

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gold and silver nanoparticles originate because of surface plasmon resonance (SPR)

absorption and scattering have been of current research interest for researchers to develop

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modern analytical methods such as optical sensing systems for analytes detection, imaging,

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DNA hybridization and detection owing to their unique photostability, extremely high

extinction coefficients and the interparticle distance-dependent optical properties [13-17].

Among the various heavy metal ions, Hg2+ is ubiquitous and has received much
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attention due to its high toxicity and bioaccumulative properties [18-21]. Bioaccumulation of
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mercury can affect brain, heart, stomach and intestines [22]. Mercuric ion shows strong
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affinity towards the ligands containing sulfur group and causes the blocking of sulfydryl

groups of proteins and enzymes that damage the central nervous system, DNA mitosis and
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the endocrine system, and led to the different severe disorders and diseases [23-25].
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Therefore, the Environmental Protection Agency and World Health Organization have

permitted Hg2+ concentrations of 2 ppb and 5 ppb in drinking water, respectively [26,27].
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Similarly, the detection of Fe3+ is equally important because of its vital roles in

environmental and biological processes, and the associated detrimental effects due to iron

deficiency (hypoferremia) and iron overload (hyperferremia) [28].

With the advancement in the concepts of supramolecular chemistry of molecular self-

assembly and molecular recognition, numbers of suitable receptors using organic dyes as

light-emitting group have been reported for the selective encapsulation and sensing of Hg2+

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Page 3 of 27
and Fe3+ ions by different optical responses. However, very few Hg2+/Fe3+-selective sensors

based on nanoparticles are reported yet despite their ideal color reporting ability than the

organic dyes [28-34]. In addition, among the various sensing systems, the sensors based on

naked-eye (colorimetric) response have several advantages because of their ability to provide

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a simple, sensitive, selective, precise and economical method for online monitoring up to

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very low concentrations of target analytes without the need of any sophisticated instruments.

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Keeping the above facts in view, we have developed a novel p-phenylenediamine (p-PDA)

capped silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) for the selective colorimetric detection of Hg2+ in

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aqueous medium. In addition to Hg2+, the SPR absorption band of AgNPs was also

disappeared in the presence of Fe3+ and therefore, the system was investigated for the

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spectrophotometric determination of both Hg2+ and Fe3+.
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2. Experimental

2.1 Materials and instrumentation

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All the starting reagents used for the experiments were purchased commercially in the
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purest form and were used without further purification. Silver nitrate was purchased from

Finar Ltd., India. Sodium borohydride (NaBH4) was purchased from Merck, Germany and p-
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phenylenediamine (p-PDA) was obtained from Spectrochem Pvt. Ltd., India. All the metal
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salts used for the experiments were purchased from Rankem Pvt. Ltd., India. Stock solutions

of the metal ions (1.0 ×10-3 M) were prepared freshly in Milli-Q water. These solutions were
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used for all spectroscopic studies after appropriate dilution. Hydrochloric acid (0.1 M) and

sodium hydroxide (0.1 M) were used to adjust the pH. All glasswares were cleaned with a

diluted HNO3 solution and rinsed with Milli-Q water prior to use.

All the absorption spectra were recorded in aqueous medium on a Cary 50 Varian

UV-Vis at room temperature using quartz cells with 1.0 cm path length. The observed pH

was measured as -log [H+] using a HANNA HI 2223 pH meter equipped with a calibrated

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combined glass electrode with standard buffer solutions. The dynamic light scattering (DLS)

data were recorded to detect change in the average size of AgNPs as expressed by calculating

the mean hydrodynamic diameter (z-average mean) from the autocorrelation function of the

intensity of light scattered from the particles undergoing Brownian motion. All the DLS data

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were obtained using Malvern Zetasize Nano (Malvern, UK).

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2.2 Synthesis of silver nanoparticles

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Silver nanoparticles were prepared using simple chemical reduction process. For bare

AgNPs, 1.0 X 10-2 M NaBH4 (0.5 mL) was added into 50 mL aqueous solution of AgNO3

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(1.0 X 10-3 M) under vigorously magnetic stirring for 10 minutes in an ice bath, producing a

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light yellow colored solution indicate the formation of bare silver nanoparticles. Then, the

organic functionalized AgNPs was prepared by adding 0.5 mL of 2.0 X 10-3 M of p-PDA to
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the prepared bare nanoparticles, producing brownish-yellow solution. The reaction was

performed in an ice-bath and stirred for approximately 2 hours to ascertain the self-assembly
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of p-PDA onto the surface of silver nanoparticles. When the reaction was over, the ice bath
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was taken away and the solution was left to reach the room temperature. The solution was

centrifuged, filtered and kept in dark for storage. The functionalized AgNPs formed were
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used without any further purification.

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2.3 Detection of metal ions

The prepared 50 mL p-PDA capped AgNPs was diluted further with 50 mL water and
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then required amount was taken for different experiments. For colorimetric detection, many

tests were carried out to optimize the sensing conditions for metal ions by adding different

concentrations of metal ions to the prepared capped AgNPs and to check the instant

colorimetric changes. During the experiments, it was found that all the sensing conditions

were very stable and no precipitates or flocs were observed. For spectrophotometric titrations,

required amount of the AgNPs was taken directly into quartz cuvette and then the spectra

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Page 5 of 27
were recorded after each aliquot addition of metal ions ([Hg2+] and [Fe3+] = 1.0 X 10-4 M)

using micropipette. The change in absorbance at 411 nm was plotted against metal

concentration to obtain different analytically useful data.

3. Results and Discussion

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The colorless AgNO3 solution in water exhibits a band at 300 nm [30]. However, with

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the formation of silver nanoparticles gave the characteristic band at ~400 nm due to the

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surface plasmon resonance (SPR). As shown in Fig. 1, the synthesized bare and p-PDA

capped AgNPs exhibited characteristic strong absorption band respectively at 407 nm and

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411 nm (Fig. 1), and brownish-yellow color in aqueous solution that confirms the formation

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of AgNPs. The capped AgNPs also exhibited a weak band of capping agent p-PDA at 238 nm

assigned due to →* transition. Further, the spectral and colorimetric responses of both
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bare and capped AgNPs were recorded at different pH. The bare AgNPs showed no

noticeable effects with the change in pH. However, the capped AgNPs showed both spectral
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and visually detectable color changes at low pH due to the protonation of the –NH2 group. As
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shown in Fig. 2, when the pH was decreased down to pH < 4.0, immediate decolorization of

capped AgNPs was observed and simultaneously the band at 411 nm was disappeared at pH
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= 2.70. These results not only confirm the presence of p-PDA on the AgNPs surface but also
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the ability of this system for the colorimetric detection of pH. The DLS data were obtained to

detect the change in the average size of capped AgNPs with pH (Fig. 3). The average
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hydrodynamic size of capped AgNPs increases from ~ 3.0 nm at pH = 6.91 to ~92.0 nm at

pH = 2.70, which indicates the aggregation of AgNPs.

<Figure 1>

<Figure 2>

<Figure 3>

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 The colorimetric sensing ability of the capped AgNPs towards different metal ions

such as Cu2+, Ni2+, Co2+, Pb2+, Cd2+, Ba2+, Mn2+, Mg2+, Fe2+, Fe3+, Al3+, Zn2+ and Hg2+ ([Mn+]

= 5.0 X 10-4 M) was investigated (Fig. 4a). The addition of Hg2+ solution resulted immediate

color change from brownish-yellow to colorless. The DLS data inferred that the average size

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of capped AgNPs increases from ~ 3.0 nm to ~ 80 nm in the presence of Hg2+ (Fig. 3c).

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Further, with the gradual addition of Hg2+ solution, we observed that only 5.66 X 10-5 M Hg2+

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is sufficient to decolorize the AgNPs solution. A slight decolorization was also observed in

the presence of Fe3+ and Cu2+ but no obvious color change was detected with other metal

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ions. Further, the colorimetric detection ability of Hg2+ by the capped AgNPs solution was

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investigated under a competitive environment containing equimolar amounts of other metal

ions (Fig. 4b). No obvious interference was observed in the presence of other metal ions,

except Fe3+. In the presence of both Fe3+ and Hg2+, a slight pale yellow color was observed
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presumably either due to the interference of Fe3+ or the color of the ferric chloride solution
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alone.
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<Figure 4>

The absorption spectrum of the capped AgNPs was next measured in the presence of
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different metal ions ([Mn+] = 5.0 X 10-4 M) to understand the colorimetric sensing ability.
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Interestingly, the SPR band of AgNPs solution at 411 nm was disappeared completely with

the addition of both Hg2+ and Fe3+ ions (Fig. 5). The DLS data clearly indicate the
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aggregation of AgNPs (Fig. 3c-d). As proposed in Fig. 6, the aggregation caused by the

complexation of Hg2+ and Fe3+ with the amine-N atom of capped p-PDA of inter-

nanoparticles that increases the average diameter of the whole nanoparticles population [35-

37]. Under the similar condition, the intensity of this band was slightly increases with other

metal ions without any appreciable shift in the SPR band. This is presumably due to the weak

coordinating interaction of the metal ions on the individual AgNPs surface with the –NH2

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Page 7 of 27
group of the capped p-PDA that cause the donation of electron density from the AgNPs

system to the metal ions. Further spectrometric measurements under a competitive

environment inferred that the detection of Hg2+ and Fe3+ ions was not interfered in the

presence of equimolar amount of other interfering cations studied such as Cu2+, Ni2+, Co2+,

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Pb2+, Cd2+, Ba2+, Mn2+, Mg2+, Fe2+, Al3+ and Zn2+.

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<Figure 5>

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<Figure 6>

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The spectrophotometric titrations of the capped AgNPs were performed with Hg2+

and Fe3+ to calculate the cation binding constant (K) and the detection limit. Upon successive

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addition of Hg2+ and Fe3+ to a fixed concentration of p-PDA AgNPs resulted gradual

broadening and decrease in the intensity of the SPR band at 411 nm along with a slight blue
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shift (Fig. 7). The spectral changes can be explained by the Mie theory [30], which stated that

when the distance between two nanoparticles becomes smaller than the sum of their radii, the
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SPR band becomes broaden and decreased. Then, the spectral data were used to calculate the
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binding constant between the AgNPs and the metal ions (Hg2+ and Fe3+) by applying the
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Benesi-Hildebrand equation [38]:

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1 1 1
= [ +1]
A - A 0 A max - A 0 K[M n+ ]
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Where A is the absorbance measured with different concentration of the metal ions,

A0 is the absorbance of the free AgNPs, Amax is the maximum absorbance of AgNPs and

metal ions, Mn+ is the concentration of the metal ions added and K is the binding constant.

Then, the graphs were plotted between 1/(A-A0) against 1/[Mn+] and the binding constant (K)

was determined from the ratio of intercept/slope (Fig. 8). The calculated binding constant for

the Hg2+ and Fe3+ with the capped silver nanoparticles were found to be 8.2 X 104 M-1 and 5.2

X 104 M-1 respectively. The soft Hg2+ showed a higher binding ability than the hard Fe3+ due

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Page 8 of 27
to the more preferable coordination interaction with the amine-N donor atom of the capping

agent. Also, the B-H plots indicate the formation of host-guest complexes in 1:1

stoichiometry as proposed in Fig. 6.

<Figure 7>

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<Figure 8>

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The detection limit of the nanosensor for the analysis of Hg2+ and Fe3+ was

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determined from the calibration curves (Fig. 9). Fig. 9 inferred that the spectral responses of

AgNPs were linearly proportional to the concentration of Hg2+ between 9.90 X 10-7 M to 9.09

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X 10-6 M (R2 = 0.9972) and Fe3+ between 9.90 X 10-7 M to 1.15 X 10-5 M (R2 = 0.98434). The

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detection limit was determined from three times the standard deviation of the blank signal

(3σ/slope) as 8.01 X 10-7 M for Hg2+ and 1.29 X 10-6 M in case of Fe3+. The obtained
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detection limit was found to be better than the most of the reported gold nanoparticles

(AuNPs) and also comparable with other AgNPs systems [33]. For comparison, the
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experimental results for the determination of Hg2+ obtained by some other methods are listed
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in Table 1.

<Figure 9>
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<Table 1>
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4. Conclusion

The p-PDA capped AgNPs was synthesized via a reduction approach and applied for
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the detection of pH, Hg2+ and Fe3+ in aqueous medium. When the pH was decreased down to

~4.0, immediate decolorization of AgNPs was observed due to the protonation of –NH2

groups followed by the aggregation of AgNPs. Also, the decolorization AgNPs solution was

observed in the presence of Hg2+. Other metal ions including Fe3+ failed to decolorize the

AgNPs systems but under competitive environment, Fe3+ interfered with the colorimetric

determination of Hg2+. The interference of Fe3+ with the colorimetric detection of Hg2+ was

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Page 9 of 27
assumed because of the strong absorption near visible region and/or the yellow coloration of

the ferric chloride solution. Spectrophotometric observations inferred that both Fe3+ and Hg2+

ions were able to diminish the AgNPs SPR band at 411 nm due to the formation of polymeric

complexes followed by the aggregation of nanoparticles. This system is found to be simple,

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cost-effective and convenient for spectrometric determination of Fe3+ and Hg2+ ions in

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aqueous medium. Therefore, this AgNPs system can be applied in real environmental and

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biological samples.

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Biographies

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S. Bothra is a Five Years Integrated MSc student at SV National Institute of Technology,
Surat, India. She is currently pursuing her master’s degree under the supervision of Dr Sahoo.
Her research is concerning with the development of chemosensors using functionalized

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nanoparticles.

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J.N. Solanki received her PhD degree in 2012 and currently, working as an Assistant
Professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering, SV National Institute of Technology,
Surat, India. Her research interest includes nanomaterials synthesis and applications, photo
electrochemical cells and chemical process design.
M
S.K. Sahoo received his PhD degree in 2008 and currently, working as an Assistant Professor
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in the Department of Applied Chemistry, SV National Institute of Technology, Surat, India.

His research interest includes design and molecular modeling studies of biomimetic ligands
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and bio-inspired fluorosensing materials, supramolecular chemistry, anion and cation

recognition, synthetic coordination chemistry and studies of metal complexes in solution.
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 FIGURES AND TABLE CAPTIONS

Fig 1. UV-Vis spectra of p-PDA, bare AgNPs and p-PDA capped AgNPs.

Fig. 2. (A) Colorimetric (pH = 2.70(a); 3.66(b); 4.28(c); 6.91(d); 7.87(e) and 9.99(f)) and (B)

UV-Vis spectral observations of p-DPA capped AgNPs at different pH.

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Fig 3. DLS data of p-PDA capped AgNPs (a), at pH = 2.77 (b), in presence of 5.0 X10-4 M

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Hg2+ (c) and 5.0 X 10-4 M Fe3+ (d) in aqueous medium.

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Fig. 4. Colorimetric responses of: (a) p-PDA capped AgNPs with different metal ions and

(b) selectivity for Hg2+ in presence of equimolar concentration of different metal ions ([Mn+]

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= 5.0 X 10-4 M).

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Fig. 5. UV-Vis spectra of p-PDA capped AgNPs in absence and presence of different metal

ions ([Mn+] = 5.0 X 10-4 M).

Fig. 6. Scheme for the interaction of Hg2+ by p-PDA capped AgNPs.

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Fig. 7. UV-Vis spectra of p-PDA capped AgNPs at various concentrations of (a) Hg2+ from 0

to 1.41 X 10-5 M and (b) Fe3+ from 0 to 1.37 X 10-5 M. Inset: Plot of concentration of
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Hg2+/Fe3+ against absorbance.

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Fig. 8. Benesi–Hildebrand plots for p-PDA capped AgNPs in presence of (a) Hg2+ and (b)
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Fe3+ ions.
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Fig. 9. The calibration curves for p-PDA capped AgNPs in presence of (a) Hg2+ and (b) Fe3+

ions.
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Table 1. Comparison of p-PDA functionalized AgNPs as a colorimetric sensor for the

detection of Hg2+ with previously reported methods.

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 t
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Fig 1. UV-Vis spectra of p-PDA, bare AgNPs and p-PDA capped AgNPs.
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 t
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Fig. 2. (A) Colorimetric (pH = 2.70(a); 3.66(b); 4.28(c); 6.91(d); 7.87(e) and 9.99(f)) and (B)
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UV-Vis spectral observations of p-DPA capped AgNPs at different pH.

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 t
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Fig. 3. DLS data of p-PDA capped AgNPs (a), at pH = 2.77 (b), in the presence of 5.0 X10-4
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M Hg2+ (c) and 5.0 X 10-4 M Fe3+ (d) in aqueous medium.

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 t
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Fig. 4. Colorimetric responses of: (a) p-PDA capped AgNPs with different metal ions and

(b) selectivity for Hg2+ in the presence of equimolar concentration of different metal ions
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([Mn+] = 5.0 X 10-4 M).
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 t
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Fig. 5. UV-Vis spectra of p-PDA capped AgNPs in the absence and presence of different

metal ions ([Mn+] = 5.0 X 10-4 M).

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 t
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Fig. 6. Scheme for the interaction of Hg2+ by p-PDA capped AgNPs.
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 t
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p te
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Fig. 7. UV-Vis spectra of p-PDA capped AgNPs at various concentrations of (a) Hg2+ from 0

to 1.41 X 10-5 M and (b) Fe3+ from 0 to 1.37 X 10-5 M. Inset: Plot of concentration of

Hg2+/Fe3+ against absorbance at 411 nm.

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 t
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Fig. 8. Benesi–Hildebrand plots for p-PDA capped AgNPs in the presence of (a) Hg2+ and (b)

Fe3+ ions.

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 t
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Fig. 9. The calibration curves for p-PDA capped AgNPs in presence of (a) Hg2+ and (b) Fe3+

ions.

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Table 1. Comparison of p-PDA functionalized AgNPs as a colorimetric sensor for the

detection of Hg2+ with previously reported methods.

Reagent LOD References

p-PDA functionalized AgNPs 8.01 X 10-7 Present

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M work

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Unmodified AgNPs 2.2 X 10-6 M [31]
Mesna modified AgNPs 2.4 X 10-9 M [33]
Oligonucleotide-functionalized AgNPs 5.0 X 10-9 M [39]

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AMP-modified AgNPs 0.5 X 10-9 M [40]
Yogurt-induced AgNPs 1.0 X 10-8 M [41]
Citrate-stabilized AgNPs 6.6 × 10-9 M [42]

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Polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP)-stabilized AuNPs 1.0 X 10-5 M [43]
Tween 20-modified AuNPs 1.0 X 10-7 M [44]
L-cysteine functionalized AuNPs 1.0 X 10-7 M [45]

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Mercaptopropionic acid-modified 1.0 X 10-7 M [46]
Poly(diallyldimethylammonium) chloride (PDDA)-coated 2.5 X 10-8 M [47]
AuNPs
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