title: Sensitive and selective detection of copper ions with highly stable polyethyleneimine-protected silver nanoclusters.
abstract: Copper is a highly toxic environmental pollutant with bioaccumulative properties. Therefore, sensitive Cu(2+) detection is very important to prevent over-ingestion, and visual detection using unaugmented vision is preferred for practical applications. In this study, hyperbranched polyethyleneimine-protected silver nanoclusters (hPEI-AgNCs) were successfully synthesized using a facile, one-pot reaction under mild conditions. The hPEI-AgNCs were very stable against extreme pH, ionic strength, temperature, and photoillumination and could act as sensitive and selective Cu(2+) sensing nanoprobes in aqueous solutions with a 10 nM limit of detection. In addition, hPEI-AgNCs-doped agarose hydrogels were developed as an instrument-free and regenerable platform for visual Cu(2+) and water quality monitoring.
authors.affiliation: College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, College of Biology, State Key Laboratory of Chemo/Biosensing and Chemometrics, Hunan University , Changsha, Hunan, People's Republic of China .
authors.forename: Zhiqin
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Yuan
authors.forename: Na
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Cai
authors.forename: Yi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Du
authors.forename: Yan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: He
authors.forename: Edward S
authors.initials: ES
authors.lastname: Yeung
mesh_terms: D003300:Copper / Q000032:analysis*; D007477:Ions; D057230:Limit of Detection; D053768:Metal Nanoparticles / Q000737:chemistry*; D056951:Photoelectron Spectroscopy / Q000379:methods* / Q000592:standards; D011094:Polyethyleneimine / Q000737:chemistry*; D012834:Silver / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D007477:Ions; D012834:Silver; D003300:Copper; D011094:Polyethyleneimine