Glycol modified gadolinium oxide nanoparticles as a potential template for selective and sensitive detection of 4-nitrophenol

Abstract

A highly efficient and simplistic fluorescence sensing method for detecting p-nitrophenol (PNP) using surface functionalized Gd₂O₃ nanoparticles was developed. The surface morphology and structural characterization of the Gd₂O₃ nanoparticles were analytically determined by TEM, SEM, EDX, PXRD, TGA, FTIR, UV and fluorescence studies. All the surface functionalized particles have shown an evident green emitted light under a UV lamp. The corresponding strong molecular interactions between the surface functionalized Gd₂O₃ nanoparticles and PNP resulted in significant quenching of the Gd₂O₃ nanoparticles as a function of concentration and nature of the nitro compounds with a higher selectivity and sensitivity. The obtained limit of detection ranges from 3.9 × 10⁻⁷ M to 7.1 × 10⁻⁷ M. The reproducibility of results was also examined for all the studied systems and it was found that the prepared samples were quite stable with a relative standard deviation of 1.1% for EG, 1.25% for DEG, 1.6% for TEG and 1.4% for TeEG respectively. The influence of the surface capping over Gd₂O₃ nanoparticles for PNP sensing was further investigated for real samples with relative standard deviations below 3.2%. The outcomes gave an effectual means to develop a sensor for fast detection and determination of perilous aromatic nitro compounds.