Droplet-based microfluidic synthesis of (Au nanorod@Ag)-polyaniline Janus nanoparticles and their application as a surface-enhanced Raman scattering nanosensor for mercury detection

• Published in: Analytical methods Vol. 11; no. 31; pp. 3966 - 3973
• Main Authors: Wang, Yue, Shang, Mengxue, Wang, Yaning, Xu, Zhangrun
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Cambridge Royal Society of Chemistry 21.08.2019
• Subjects: Catalysis; Cations; Conducting polymers; Droplets; Environmental science; Fabrication; Gold; Ion concentration; Ions; Mercury; Mercury (metal); Mercury surface; Metal ions; Metals; Microfluidics; Nanoparticles; Nanorods; Nanosensors; Photovoltaic cells; Photovoltaics; Polyanilines; Polymers; Raman spectra; Raman spectroscopy; Reaction time; Selectivity; Silver; Solar cells; Spectroscopy; Synergistic effect; Synthesis; Water analysis; Water sampling
• ISSN: 1759-9660; 1759-9679
• DOI: 10.1039/c9ay01213c

Metal-conducting polymer hybrid nanoparticles (NPs), due to the synergistic effect of metal NPs and polymers, have attracted significant attention and shown versatile applications. In this work, we proposed a simple and quick method for the synthesis of (Au nanorod (NR)@Ag)-polyaniline (PANI) Janus nanoparticles (JNPs) with the use of a droplet-based microfluidic platform. Precise control of droplet volumes and reliable manipulation of individual droplets during synthesis enabled the (AuNR@Ag)-PANI JNPs to possess excellent dispersion and uniform size. Moreover, the reaction time for the fabrication of the (AuNR@Ag)-PANI JNPs was largely shortened with such a microfluidic platform. The application of the prepared (AuNR@Ag)-PANI JNPs, which can act as a surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) sensor, for the detection of Hg 2+ ions with high sensitivity and good selectivity was demonstrated. This SERS nanosensor displayed a fairly good response to Hg 2+ ions over other possible interfering metal cations, owing to the strong binding affinity between PANI and Hg 2+ ions and causing an increase in the Raman intensity of PANI. A good linear relationship between the Raman intensity increment of PANI and Hg 2+ ion concentration was obtained in the range of 1-150 nM, and the detection limit of Hg 2+ ion concentration was 0.97 nM. Besides, the (AuNR@Ag)-PANI-based SERS nanosensor was successfully applied to the detection of Hg 2+ ions in real water samples. Thus, a facile route for the fabrication of (AuNR@Ag)-PANI JNPs by using a droplet-based microfluidic platform is presented, which have been employed to determine Hg 2+ ions in combination with SERS spectroscopy. We envision that such a droplet-based microfluidic synthesis strategy can provide a new insight into the design and fabrication of novel NPs, which may be applied in various fields, such as catalysis, photovoltaics, bioscience, and environmental science. Monodisperse anisotropic (AuNR@Ag)-PANI JNPs were synthesized by using a droplet-based microfluidic platform, and show a fairly good response to Hg 2+ ions and have been successfully applied for quantitative analysis of Hg 2+ ions in real water samples.