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Detection of organic dyes using Ag NPAs/SMP SERS substrate produced via sandpaper template-assisted lithography and liquid–liquid interface self-assembly

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Abstract

Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) is a highly sensitive and reliable fingerprinting technique. However, its analytical capability is closely related to the quality of a SERS substrate used for the analysis. In particular, conventional colloidal substrates possess disadvantages in terms of controllability, stability, and reproducibility, which limit their application. In order to address these issues, a simple, cost-effective, and efficient SERS substrate based on silver nanoparticle arrays (Ag NPAs) and sandpaper-molded polydimethylsiloxane (SMP) was proposed in this work. Successfully prepared via template lithography and liquid–liquid interface self-assembly (LLISA), the substrate can be applied to the specific detection of organic dyes in the environment. The substrate exhibited good SERS performance, and the limit of detection (LOD) of rhodamine 6G (R6G) was shown to be 10−7 M under the optimal conditions (1000 grit sandpaper) with a relative standard deviation (RSD) of 7.76%. Moreover, the SERS signal intensity was maintained at 60% of the initial intensity after the substrate was stored for 30 days. In addition, the Ag NPAs/SMP SERS substrate was also employed to detect crystal violet (CV) and methylene blue (MB) with the LODs of 10−6 M and 10−7 M, respectively. In summary, the Ag NPAs/SMP SERS substrate prepared in this study has great potential for the detection of organic dyes in ecological environments.

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Funding

This paper was financially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant no.12172002) and the Key Research and Development Program Projects in Anhui Province (grant no. 202004h07020026).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Material Science and Engineering, Anhui University of Science and Technology, Huainan, Anhui, 232001, People’s Republic of China

    Yuanhang Tan, Ziyu Zhou, Yiting Xu, Atian Xie & Changguo Xue

  2. CAS Key Laboratory of Mechanical Behavior and Design of Materials, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230026, People’s Republic of China

    Shangquan Wu & Changguo Xue

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  1. Yuanhang Tan
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Tan, Y., Zhou, Z., Xu, Y. et al. Detection of organic dyes using Ag NPAs/SMP SERS substrate produced via sandpaper template-assisted lithography and liquid–liquid interface self-assembly. Anal Bioanal Chem 416, 1047–1056 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-023-05094-8

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