The sensitive fluorimetric method for the determination of curcumin using the enhancement of mixed micelle

Curcumin (C21H20O6) is a natural antioxidant, which is considered to be a very useful compound in health matters, and is employed in the treatment of cardiovascular and arthritic illnesses. It is found that the fluorescence of curcumin is greatly enhanced by mixed micelle of sodium dodecyl benzene sulfonate (SDBS) and cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) surfactants. Based on this, a sensitive fluorimetric method for the determination of curcumin in aqueous solution is proposed. In the HOAc-NaOAc buffer, the fluorescence intensity of curcumin is proportional to the concentration of curcumin in the range of 0.00020-0.74 microg/mL and the detection limit is 0.017 ng/mL. The synthetic and actual samples are satisfactorily determined. In addition, the interaction mechanism is also studied.