A portable NELIBS-based paper sensor for on-site trace element analysis in sewage and soil
Fengjing Cao1, Shixiang Ma2, Hongwu Tian2
1Research Center of Intelligent Equipment, Beijing Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences, Beijing, 100097, China; Key Laboratory of Agricultural Sensors, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Beijing, 100097, China; Institute of Modern Optics and Center of Single-Molecule Science, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Micro-scale Optical Information Science and Technology, Nankai University, Tianjin, 330350, China.
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Ultrafast on-site detection of elements in polluted water and soil is crucial for farming and food safety, yet remains challenging due to complex and time-consuming pretreatment. Nanoparticle-enhanced laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (NELIBS) enables rapid on-site detection of trace heavy metals in complex samples without pretreatment while amplifying signal. We report a paper-based sensor modified with gold nanorods embedded in metal-organic frameworks (AuNRs@MOFs) using LIBS for multiplexed trace element detection in sewage and soil. It exhibits excellent linear response and low detection limits for Cu and Cr in water (0.03 μg/L, 2.49 μg/L) and soil (0.145 mg/kg, 0.072 mg/kg), with accuracy comparable to ICP-MS in real samples. This sensor provides a powerful tool for environmental protection and food safety.
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