H. Montaseri, P. Forbes
Oct 1, 2017
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Journal
2017 IEEE SENSORS
Abstract
Acetaminophen (AC) is a commonly used analgesic and antipyretic drug. It has been detected in water systems and is of environmental concern owing to its potential impacts. In this study a simple and economical one-pot organometallic approach was applied to synthesize water soluble CdSe/ZnS quantum dots (QDs). A molecular imprinted polymer (MIP) layer was then anchored on the surface of the L-cysteine-CdSe/ZnS QDs via the Stober method. The structures of QDs, MIP@QDs and NIP@QDs were characterized by fluorescence spectroscopy, FTIR and TEM. The fluorescence of L-Cys-CdSe/ZnS QDs and MIP@QDs were enhanced and quenched respectively by the introduction of AC allowing for the development of a simple and rapid method for AC detection. Under optimal conditions, AF (F-Fo) of L-Cys-CdSe/ZnS QDs was linearly proportional to AC concentration from 3.0–100.0 nmol L−1 with a detection limit of 4.22 nmol L−1 while the fluorescence intensity of MIP@QDs showed quenching in the presence of AC over the linear range of 10.0–900.0 nmol L−1 with a detection limit of 6.0 nmol L−1. The prototype sensor material can potentially be applied for the detection of AC in real samples.