Exploring the design and performance of a tellurium optical sensor utilizing a plasticizer-free polymer inclusion membrane

A highly responsive, discerning, and uncomplicated technique has been devised for immobilizing reagents onto a plasticizer-free optical sensor membrane, employing polymer inclusion membranes (PIMs). This procedural strategy relies on a physical immobilization approach, specifically encapsulation, resulting in the creation of an optical sensing membrane. The responsive PIM is composed of poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) as the fundamental polymer, Aliquat 336 as an extractant, and 4-(4 -chlorobenzylideneimino)-3-methyl-5-mercapto-1,2,4-triazole (CBIMMT) as the reagent. The optimized sensor demonstrates a linear range of 6.00-156 ng/mL for Te(IV), along with detection and quantification limits of 1.75 and 5.60 ng/mL, respectively. The sensor response time is 3.0 min, confirming its reproducibility. Effective regeneration of the sensor is achieved using a 0.2 mol/L HCl solution. The sensor membrane's selectivity is evaluated against various interfering ions, underscoring minimal interference. The sensor membrane efficacy is demonstrated through successful applications in quantifying Te(IV) levels, including natural water, chalcogenides, milk, vegetables, and soil samples.

Utility of 5-(2',4'-dimethylphenylazo)-6-hydroxy-pyrimidine-2,4-dione in PVC membrane for a novel green optical chemical sensor to detect zinc ion in environmental samples

In plasticized (2-nitro-phenyloctyl ether (o-NPOE)) and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) membrane incorporating (N,N-diethyl-5-(octadecanoylimino)-5H-benzo[a] phenolxazine-9-amine (ETH 5294) and sodium tetraphenyl borate (NaTPB), an ionophore 5-(2',4'-dimethylphenylazo)-6-hydroxy-pyrimidine-2,4-dione (DMPAHPD) form an optical chemical sensor for zinc determination is ascribed. The sensor response is based on selective complexation of Zn²⁺ with DMPAHPD in the designed membrane phase, resulting in an ion exchange process between H⁺ in the membrane and Zn²⁺ in the sample solution. The influences of several experimental parameters, as membrane composition, pH, and type and concentration of the regenerating reagent, were demonstrated. The sensor has a response range of 5.0 × 10^-9 to 2.5 × 10^-5 M Zn²⁺ with detection and quantification limits of 1.6 × 10^-9 and 4.9 × 10^-9 M, respectively. The response time of 1 min at 0.1 M phosphate buffer solution of pH 5.0 with recording repeatability and sensor-to sensor reproducibility is reported. The proposed sensor signifies high selectivity for Zn²⁺ over various transition metal ions, alkali, and alkaline earth ions. The sensor membrane can be simply regenerated with 0.5 M HNO₃. The sensor has been used to assess Zn²⁺ in river, waste, tap, sea, well, and spring waters samples, serum of diabetic patients, powdered milk, hair, red meat, pharmaceutical formulations, and talc powder samples.