Malachite Green Optical Sensor Based on Electrospun Polyimide Nanofiber

Abstract

Malachite green (MG) is a triphenylmethane cationic dye used in aquaculture practice, although it has been banned in several countries. The illegal use by fish producers, however, persists due to its effectiveness, and ready and cheap supply. To prevent indiscriminate applications, strict control measures with simple analytical approaches are therefore necessary. With this purpose, a novel, cheap and simple method applying electrospun polyimide nanofibers was developed and validated for MG control in water by color image analysis. For detection, a simple apparatus and ImageJ® software to treat images captured by common smartphones were used. A detection limit of 0.013 mg/L with a linear analytical response range within the concentration of 0.05 to 0.3 mg/ L of malachite green (MG) with a correlation coefficient of 0.997 and standard deviation (n = 9) varying from 1.01 to 3.92% was achieved with the proposed method. Accuracy was assessed by recovery assays in water samples and percentages of 96.6 to 102.0% were obtained. The method is robust and suitable for the rapid and reliable monitoring of MG in water.

Functional Electrospun Nanofibrous Hybrid Materials for Colorimetric Sensors: A Review

“…It is the most direct method and widely used for preparing nanofibers for sensors, drug delivery, , catalysts, , water purification, , wood healing, and healthcare, , etc. For example, de Souza and co-workers reported a simple method applying electrospinning polyimide nanofibers for malachite green control in the water by a color image analysis . So far, various nanoparticles have been successfully synthesized, and as long as the nanoparticles or their precursors are uniformly distributed in the polymer solution, nanoparticle polymer fibers can be easily prepared .…”

“…For example, de Souza and co-workers reported a simple method applying electrospinning polyimide nanofibers for malachite green control in the water by a color image analysis. 46 So far, various nanoparticles have been successfully synthesized, and as long as the nanoparticles or their precursors are uniformly distributed in the polymer solution, nanoparticle polymer fibers can be easily prepared. 47 By changing the number of nanoparticles or precursors added to the electrospinning solution, the density of nanoparticles in polymer fibers can be easily controlled, thereby adjusting the performance of composite materials.…”

Optical Properties of Electrospun Nanofiber Mats

“…On the other hand, the impact of the environment on the optical properties of nanofibrous membranes makes them suitable as sensing devices, e.g., for toxicants, pH value, temperature, acids, volatile organic compounds, etc. [29][30][31][32][33].…”