Lead Assays with Smartphone Detection Using a Monolithic Rod with 4-(2-Pyridylazo) Resorcinol

A monolithic rod of polyurethane foam-[4-(2-pyridylazo) resorcinol] (PUF-PAR) as a simple chemical sensor for lead assays with smartphone detection and image processing was developed. With readily available simple apparatus such as a plastic cup and a stirrer rod, the monolithic PUF rod was synthesized in a glass tube. The monolithic PUF-PAR rod could be directly loaded by standard/sample solution without sample preparation. A one-shot image in G/B value from a profile plot in ImageJ for a sample with triplicate results via a single standard calibration approach was obtained. A linear single standard calibration was: [G/B value] = -0.038[µg Pb²⁺] + 2.827, R² = 0.95 for 10-30 µg Pb²⁺ with a limit of quantitation (LOQ) of 33 µg L^-1. The precision was lower than 15% RSD. The proposed method was tested by an assay for Pb²⁺ contents in drinking water samples from Bangkok. The results obtained by the proposed method agree with those of ICP-OES and with 100-120% recovery, demonstrating that the method is useful for screening on-site water monitoring.