Functionalized Carbon Nanoparticle-Based Sensors for\nChemical Warfare Agents

Abstract

Real-time\nsensing of chemical warfare agents (CWAs) is, today,\na crucial topic to prevent lethal effects of a chemical terroristic\nattack. For this reason, the development of efficient, selective,\nsensitive, and reversible sensoristic devices, which are able to detect\nby optical response the ppm levels of these compounds, both in water\nand in air, is strongly required. Here, we report the design and synthesis\nof a fluorescent nanosensor, based on carbon nanoparticles covalently\nfunctionalized with ethanolamine arms, which exploits the multitopic\nsupramolecular interaction with nerve agents, ensuring highly efficient\n(log <i>K</i> 6.46) and selective molecular recognition.\nMoreover, given the aqueous dispersibility of carbon nanoparticles,\nthese nanosensors ensure even higher sensitivity, detecting sub-ppt\nconcentration of nerve agents in water, and sub-ppm level in air by\nusing a common digital camera or a smartphone. Our results pave the\nway to an innovative class of low-cost reusable CWA sensors, prompting,\nfor the first time, the simultaneous detection of nerve agents through\ngaseous and aqueous media, thus extending the protection range to\npublic water supplies.