Resumen de Macro, micro and nanomaterials based tools and strategies for heavy metals detection
The principal focus of this thesis is the development of novel heavy metal sensing strategies based on the use of ligands as sensing receptors, macro, micro and nanomaterials as immobilization platforms and electrochemical and optical techniques as signal transducing technologies.
After synthesizing different families of pyrazole derived ligands, their coordination chemistry with various metals for the further application of the ligands and complexes in the heavy metals sensing field has been studied.
Two different heavy metals sensing techniques have been employed in this work: optical and electrochemical techniques.
Referred to the optical techniques, different strategies for heavy metals detection and quantification have been developed. Modified gold nanoparticles with N-alkylaminopyrazole ligands have been prepared and used for sensing purposes taking the advantages of the changes produced in the surface plasmon band when metals are present. In addition, the fluorescence features of the N-aklylaminopyrazole ligands have been used for the development of heavy metals chemosensors in solution as well as in a simple paper-based sensing system.
Electrochemical stripping analyses of heavy metals using screen-printed electrodes (SPE), with the main objective to develop mercury-free sensors, have been also studied. Microscopic characterization of micro and nanostructures present in the sensing surface have been used to clarify the sensor performance while being applied for heavy metals quantification in water samples .
