Graphene-Rhodamine Nanoprobe for Colorimetric and Fluorimetric Hg(2+) Ion Assay

This article reveals the first ever prospective application of Graphene-Rhodamine array (GRH) as a colorimetric and fluorimetric sensor for Hg(2+) ions. The duality of Graphene to undergo π-π and dispersive interactions with Rhodamine as well as to act as a selective adsorbent for Hg(2+) is conceptualized in this study. These interactions lead to decrease in absorbance of the dye in the presence of graphene, which is restored when kept in contact with Hg(2+) ions. The feasibility of the mechanism has been proved using EDTA as the coordinating ligand. It is noteworthy that all the optical variations occurred in the visible scale of the electromagnetic spectrum. The GRH array exhibited higher sensitivity toward the target ion with a limit of detection of 2 ppb. A perfect linear variation of absorbance at 554 nm with Hg(2+) concentration was observed in 0-1000 nM range, enabling the use of the system as a quantitative sensor for the test ion. The commendable selectivity of the array toward Hg(2+) ion has been investigated by observing the optical response in the presence of other environmentally relevant metal ions. A reversible turn off and turn on INHIBIT logic gate has been proposed which extends the scope of the designed array for the development of automated chemical systems. The fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) ability of graphene paves the backbone for the fluorimetric detection. Fluorimetric strategy yielded a much lower limit of detection of 380 ppt using this probe, which makes a significant advance in trace detection of Hg(2+) ions.