Amberlite IR-120 modified with 8-hydroxyquinoline as efficient adsorbent for solid-phase extraction and flame atomic absorption determination of trace amounts of some metal ions

AIEgen-sensitized lanthanide nanocrystals as luminescent probes for intracellular Fe3+ monitoring

The abnormal Fe³⁺ level is known to cause various diseases, such as heart failure, liver damage and neurodegeneration. In situ probing Fe³⁺ in living cells or organisms is highly desired for both biological research and medical diagnostics. Herein, hybrid nanocomposites NaEuF₄@TCPP were constructed by the assembly of an aggregation-induced emission luminogen (AIEgen) TCPP and NaEuF₄ nanocrystals (NCs). The anchored TCPP on the surface of NaEuF₄ NCs can reduce rotational relaxation of the excited state and efficiently transfer the energy to the Eu³⁺ ions with minimized nonradiative energy loss. Consequently, the prepared NaEuF₄@TCPP nanoparticles (NPs) exhibited an intense red emission with a 103-fold enhancement relative to that in NaEuF₄ NCs under 365 nm excitation. A selectively quenching response to Fe³⁺ ions for the NaEuF₄@TCPP NPs makes them luminescent probes for sensitive detection of Fe³⁺ ions with a low detection limit of 340 nM. Moreover, the luminescence of NaEuF₄@TCPP NPs could be recovered by the addition of iron chelators. Benefiting from their good biocompatibility and stability in living cells, together with the characteristic of the reversible luminescence response, the lipo-coated NaEuF₄@TCPP probes were successfully applied for real-time monitoring of Fe³⁺ ions in living HeLa cells. These results are expected to motivate the exploration of AIE-based lanthanide probes for sensing and biomedical applications.

Application of Deep Eutectic Solvent Modified Cotton as a Sorbent for Online Solid-Phase Extraction and Determination of Trace Amounts of Copper and Nickel in Water and Biological Samples

Deep eutectic solvent (DES) was used as the extractant to improve the extraction properties of cotton. DES of choline chloride-urea (ChCl-urea) was prepared and immobilized on the surface of cotton fibers. The resulting sorbent was packed on a microcolumn, and a flow injection flame atomic absorption spectrometry was designed for the online separation and determination of trace amounts of copper and nickel. Various parameters affecting the extraction recovery of analytes such as pH, sample volume, sample loading rate, nature, volume, concentration, and flow rate of eluent were investigated and optimized. Under the optimum conditions, the method showed good linearity in the concentration range of 0.25-50.0 and 4.0-125.0 μg L^-1 with the coefficient of determination (r ²) of 0.9991 and 0.9990 for copper and nickel, respectively. The method was very sensitive with the detection limits (defined as 3S_b/m) of 0.05 and 0.60 μg L^-1 for Cu and Ni, respectively. It was successfully applied for the determination of Cu and Ni in water and biological samples. The accuracy of the method was evaluated through the recovery experiments and independent analysis by electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry.

Pyridine-functionalized Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles as a novel sorbent for the preconcentration of lead and cadmium ions in tree leaf as a bioindicator of urban traffic pollution

We have developed a facile and highly sensitive sorbent for cadmium and lead ions. It is based on Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles functionalized with a derivative of picoline and was characterized by scanning electron microscopy, differential thermographic analysis, and elemental analysis. The material can be applied to the preconcentration of lead and cadmium ions. Factors such as the type, concentration and volume of eluent, the pH of the sample solution, the time for extraction, and the volume of the sample were studied. The effects of a variety of ions on preconcentration and recovery of these ions were also investigated. The ions were determined by FAAS, and the limits of detection are <0.8 and <0.061 μg L⁻¹ for lead and cadmium, respectively. Recoveries and precisions are >98.0 % and <1.3 %, respectively. The method was validated by analyzing several certified leaf reference materials.