Fullerenes in the analytical sciences

CA19-9 and CEA biosensors in pancreatic cancer

Cancer is a complex pathophysiological condition causing millions of deaths each year. Early diagnosis is essential especially for pancreatic cancer. Existing diagnostic tools rely on circulating biomarkers such as Carbohydrate Antigen 19-9 (CA19-9) and Carcinoembryonic Antigen (CEA). Unfortunately, these markers are nonspecific and may be increased in a variety of disorders. Accordingly, diagnosis of pancreatic cancer generally involves more invasive approaches such as biopsy as well as imaging studies. Recent advances in biosensor technology have allowed the development of precise diagnostic tools having enhanced analytical sensitivity and specificity. Herein we examine these advances in the detection of cancer in general and in pancreatic cancer specifically. Furthermore, we highlight novel technologies in the measurement of CA19-9 and CEA and explore their future application in the early detection of pancreatic cancer.

Dispersive Micro-Solid Phase Extraction Using a Graphene Oxide Nanosheet with Neocuproine and Batocuproine for the Preconcentration of Traces of Metal Ions in Food Samples

A dispersive micro-solid phase extraction (Dµ-SPE) method for the preconcentration of trace metal ions (Pb, Cd, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn) on graphene oxide with the complexing reagents neocuproine or batocuproine is presented here. Metal ions form cationic complexes with neocuproine and batocuproine. These compounds are adsorbed on the GO surface via electrostatic interactions. The factors affecting the separation and preconcentration of analytes such as pH, eluent (concentration, type, volume), amount of neocuproine, batocuproine and GO, mixing time, and sample volume were optimized. The optimal sorption pH was 8. The adsorbed ions were effectively eluted with 5 mL 0.5 mol L^-1 HNO₃ solution and determined by the ICP-OES technique. The preconcentration factor for the GO/neocuproine and GO/batocuproine in the range 10-100 and 40-200 was obtained for the analytes, with detection limits of 0.035-0.84 ng mL^-1 and 0.047-0.54 ng mL^-1, respectively. The method was validated by the analysis of the three certified reference materials: M-3 HerTis, M-4 CormTis, and M-5 CodTis. The procedure was applied to determine metal levels in food samples.

New analytical methods using carbon-based nanomaterials for detection of Salmonella species as a major food poisoning organism in water and soil resources

Salmonella is one of the most prevalent causing agents of food- and water-borne illnesses, posing an ongoing public health threat. These food-poisoning bacteria contaminate the resources at different stages such as production, aggregation, processing, distribution, as well as marketing. According to the high incidence of salmonellosis, effective strategies for early-stage detection are required at the highest priority. Since traditional culture-dependent methods and polymerase chain reaction are labor-intensive and time-taking, identification of early and accurate detection of Salmonella in food and water samples can prevent significant health economic burden and lessen the costs. The immense potentiality of biosensors in diagnosis, such as simplicity in operation, the ability of multiplex analysis, high sensitivity, and specificity, have driven research in the evolution of nanotechnology, innovating newer biosensors. Carbon nanomaterials enhance the detection sensitivity of biosensors while obtaining low levels of detection limits due to their possibility to immobilize huge amounts of bioreceptor units at insignificant volume. Moreover, conjugation and functionalization of carbon nanomaterials with metallic nanoparticles or organic molecules enables surface functional groups. According to these remarkable properties, carbon nanomaterials are widely exploited in the development of novel biosensors. To be specific, carbon nanomaterials such as carbon nanotubes, graphene and fullerenes function as transducers in the analyte recognition process or surface immobilizers for biomolecules. Herein the potential application of carbon nanomaterials in the development of novel Salmonella biosensors platforms is reviewed comprehensively. In addition, the current problems and critical analyses of the future perspectives of Salmonella biosensors are discussed.

Carbon Nanomaterials as Versatile Platforms for Biosensing Applications

A biosensor is defined as a measuring system that includes a biological receptor unit with distinctive specificities toward target analytes. Such analytes include a wide range of biological origins such as DNAs of bacteria or viruses, or proteins generated from an immune system of infected or contaminated living organisms. They further include simple molecules such as glucose, ions, and vitamins. One of the major challenges in biosensor development is achieving efficient signal capture of biological recognition-transduction events. Carbon nanomaterials (CNs) are promising candidates to improve the sensitivity of biosensors while attaining low detection limits owing to their capability of immobilizing large quantities of bioreceptor units at a reduced volume, and they can also act as a transduction element. In addition, CNs can be adapted to functionalization and conjugation with organic compounds or metallic nanoparticles; the creation of surface functional groups offers new properties (e.g., physical, chemical, mechanical, electrical, and optical properties) to the nanomaterials. Because of these intriguing features, CNs have been extensively employed in biosensor applications. In particular, carbon nanotubes (CNTs), nanodiamonds, graphene, and fullerenes serve as scaffolds for the immobilization of biomolecules at their surface and are also used as transducers for the conversion of signals associated with the recognition of biological analytes. Herein, we provide a comprehensive review on the synthesis of CNs and their potential application to biosensors. In addition, we discuss the efforts to improve the mechanical and electrical properties of biosensors by combining different CNs.

Sono-nano chemistry: A new era of synthesising polyhydroxylated carbon nanomaterials with hydroxyl groups and their industrial aspects

The main objective of this review is to derive the salient features of previously developed ultrasound-assisted methods for hydroxylating graphene and Buckminsterfullerene (C₆₀). The pros and cons associated to ultrasound-assisted synthesis of hydroxy-carbon nanomaterials in designing the strategical methods for the industrial bulk production are also discussed. A guideline on the statistical methods has also been considered to further provide the scopes towards the application of the previously reported methods. Irrespective of many useful methods that have been developed in order to functionalize C₆₀ and graphene by diverse oxygenated functional groups e.g. epoxide, hydroxyl, carboxyl as well as metal/metal oxide via a combination of organic chemistry and sonochemistry, there is no report dealing exclusively on the application of ultrasonic cavitation particularly to synthesising polyhydroxylated carbon nanomaterials. On this context, this review emphasizes in investigating the critical aspects of sono-nanochemistry and the statistical approaches to optimize the variables in the sonochemical process towards a large-scale synthesis of polyhydroxylated graphene and C₆₀.

A Sensitive Gold Nanoplasmonic SERS Quantitative Analysis Method for Sulfate in Serum Using Fullerene as Catalyst

Fullerene exhibited strong catalysis of the redox reaction between HAuCl₄ and trisodium citrate to form gold nanoplasmon with a strong surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) effect at 1615 cm^−1 in the presence of Vitoria blue B molecule probes. When fullerene increased, the SERS peak enhanced linearly due to formation of more AuNPs as substrate. Upon addition of Ba²⁺, Ba²⁺ ions adsorb on the fullerene surface to inhibit the catalysis of fullerene that caused the SERS peak decreasing. Analyte SO₄^2− combined with Ba²⁺ to form stable BaSO₄ precipitate to release free fullerene that the catalysis recovered, and the SERS intensity increased linearly. Thus, a new SERS quantitative analysis method was established for the detection of sulfate in serum samples, with a linear range of 0.03⁻3.4 μM.

Study of morphological and mechanical features of multinuclear and mononuclear SW480 cells by atomic force microscopy

This article studies the morphological and mechanical features of multinuclear and mononuclear SW480 colon cancer cells by atomic force microscopy to understand their drug-resistance. The SW480 cells were incubated with the fullerenol concentrations of 1 mg/ml and 2 mg/ml. Morphological and mechanical features including the height, length, width, roughness, adhesion force and Young's modulus of three multinuclear cell groups and three mononuclear cell groups were imaged and analyzed. It was observed that the features of multinuclear cancer cells and mononuclear cancer cells were significantly different after the treatment with fullerenol. The experiment results indicated that the mononuclear SW480 cells were more sensitive to fullerenol than the multinuclear SW480 cells, and the multinuclear SW480 cells exhibited a stronger drug-resistance than the mononuclear SW480 cells. This work provides a guideline for the treatments of multinuclear and mononuclear cancer cells with drugs.

Analytical Nanoscience and Nanotechnology: Where we are and where we are heading

The main aim of this paper is to offer an objective and critical overview of the situation and trends in Analytical Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (AN&N), which is an important break point in the evolution of Analytical Chemistry in the XXI century as they were computers and instruments in the second half of XX century. The first part of this overview is devoted to provide a general approach to AN&N by describing the state of the art of this recent topic, being the importance of it also emphasized. Secondly, particular but very relevant trends in this topic are outlined: the analysis of the nanoworld, the so "third way" in AN&N, the growing importance of bioanalysis, the evaluation of both nanosensors and nanosorbents, the impact of AN&N in bioimaging and in nanotoxicological studies, as well as the crucial importance of reliability of the nanotechnological processes and results for solving real analytical problems in the frame of Social Responsibility (SR) of science and technology. Several reflections are included at the end of this overview written as a bird's eye view, which is not an easy task for experts in AN&N.

Using Au@nano-C60 nanocomposite as an enhanced sensing platform in modeling a TNT aptasensor

Based on the unique characteristics of the combination of fullerene and gold nanoparticles, we successfully designed a new and facile nanocomposite (Au@nano-C60) to fabricate an aptasensor for the ultra-sensitive and selective detection of TNT. The gold nanoparticles decorated fullerene onto a glassy carbon electrode was prepared using an electrochemical method by the in situ generation of Au nanoparticles onto the surface of the glassy carbon electrode modified with activated fullerene. Successively, the NH₂-Apt as a receptor molecule of 2,4,6-Trinitrotoluen was covalently attached onto the modified electrode surface with the resultant nanocomposite. With the addition of the target onto the aptasensor surface and the formation of target/Apt complex, a linear response was obtained from 0.50 fM to 5 μM as well as a limit of detection down to 0.17 fM. The proposed aptasensor shows a wider linear response range and lower limit of detection for the specific detection of 2,4,6-Trinitrotoluen. This newly developed strategy will pave the way to partly meet the requirements in the field of homeland security and public safety.

The Reciprocal Principle of Selectand-Selector-Systems in Supramolecular Chromatography †

In selective chromatography and electromigration methods, supramolecular recognition of selectands and selectors is due to the fast and reversible formation of association complexes governed by thermodynamics. Whereas the selectand molecules to be separated are always present in the mobile phase, the selector employed for the separation of the selectands is either part of the stationary phase or is added to the mobile phase. By the reciprocal principle, the roles of selector and selectand can be reversed. In this contribution in honor of Professor Stig Allenmark, the evolution of the reciprocal principle in chromatography is reviewed and its advantages and limitations are outlined. Various reciprocal scenarios, including library approaches, are discussed in efforts to optimize selectivity in separation science.

Carbon Nanomaterials Interfacing with Neurons: An In vivo Perspective

Developing new tools that outperform current state of the art technologies for imaging, drug delivery or electrical sensing in neuronal tissues is one of the great challenges in neurosciences. Investigations into the potential use of carbon nanomaterials for such applications started about two decades ago. Since then, numerous in vitro studies have examined interactions between these nanomaterials and neurons, either by evaluating their compatibility, as vectors for drug delivery, or for their potential use in electric activity sensing and manipulation. The results obtained indicate that carbon nanomaterials may be suitable for medical therapies. However, a relatively small number of in vivo studies have been carried out to date. In order to facilitate the transformation of carbon nanomaterial into practical neurobiomedical applications, it is essential to identify and highlight in the existing literature the strengths and weakness that different carbon nanomaterials have displayed when probed in vivo. Unfortunately the current literature is sometimes sparse and confusing. To offer a clearer picture of the in vivo studies on carbon nanomaterials in the central nervous system, we provide a systematic and critical review. Hereby we identify properties and behavior of carbon nanomaterials in vivo inside the neural tissues, and we examine key achievements and potentially problematic toxicological issues.

Removal of aqueous nC60 fullerene from water by low pressure membrane filtration

The potential environmental and health risks of engineered nanoparticles such as buckminsterfullerene C60 in water require their removal during the production of drinking water. We present a study focusing on (i) the removal mechanism and (ii) the elucidation of the role of the membrane pore size during removal of nC60 fullerene nanoparticle suspensions in dead-end microfiltration and ultrafiltration mimicking separation in real industrial water treatment plants. Membranes were selected with pore sizes ranging from 18 nm to 500 nm to determine the significance of the nC60 to membrane pore size ratio and the adsorption affinity between nC60 and membrane material during filtration. Experiments were carried out with a dead-end bench-scale system operated at constant flux conditions including a hydraulic backwash cleaning procedure. nC60 nanoparticles can be efficiently removed by low pressure membrane technology with smaller and, unexpectedly, also by mostly similar or larger pores than the particle size, although the nC60 filtration behaviour appeared to be different. The nC60 size to membrane pore size ratio and the ratio of the cake-layer deposition resistance to the clean membrane resistance, both play an important role on the nC60 filtration behaviour and on the efficiency of the backwash procedure recovering the initial membrane filtration conditions. These results become specifically significant in the context of drinking water production, for which they provide relevant information for an accurate selection between membrane processes and operational parameters for the removal of nC60 in the drinking water treatment.

Development of polyacrylic acid-functionalized porous zinc sulfide nanospheres for a non-aqueous solid phase extraction procedure toward alkaloids

A non-aqueous solid phase extraction (SPE) procedure was developed and optimized utilizing novel polyacrylic acid-functionalized porous zinc sulfide nanospheres (PAA–PZNs) as the sorbents for the enrichment of alkaloids.

Simultaneous speciation analysis of inorganic arsenic, chromium and selenium in environmental waters by 3-(2-aminoethylamino) propyltrimethoxysilane modified multi-wall carbon nanotubes packed microcolumn solid phase extraction and ICP-MS

Speciation analysis of inorganic arsenic, chromium and selenium in environmental waters is of great significance for the monitoring of environmental pollution. In this work, 3-(2-aminoethylamino) propyltrimethoxysilane (AAPTS) functionalized multi-wall carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) were synthesized and employed as the adsorbent for simultaneous speciation analysis of inorganic arsenic, chromium and selenium in environmental waters by microcolumn solid-phase extraction (SPE)-inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). It was found that As(V), Cr(VI) and Se(VI) could be selectively adsorbed on the microcolumn packed with AAPTS-MWCNTs adsorbent at pH around 2.2, while As(III), Cr(III) and Se(IV) could not be retained at this pH and passed through the microcolumn directly. Total inorganic arsenic, chromium and selenium was determined after the oxidation of As(III), Cr(III) and Se(IV) to As(V), Cr(VI) and Se(VI) with 10.0 μmol L(-1) KMnO4. The assay of As(III), Cr(III) and Se(IV) was based on subtracting As(V), Cr(VI) and Se(VI) from the total As, Cr and Se, respectively. Under the optimized conditions, the detection limits of 15, 38 and 16 ng L(-1) with the relative standard deviations (RSDs) of 7.4, 2.4 and 6.2% (c=1 µg L(-1), n=7) were obtained for As(V), Cr(VI) and Se(VI), respectively. The developed method was validated by analyzing four Certified Reference Materials, rainwater, Yangtze River and East Lake waters.

Beyond nC60: strategies for identification of transformation products of fullerene oxidation in aquatic and biological samples

Owing to their exceptional properties and versatility, fullerenes are in widespread use for numerous applications. Increased production and use of fullerenes will inevitably result in accelerated environmental release. However, study of the occurrence, fate, and transport of fullerenes in the environment is complicated because a variety of surface modifications can occur as a result of either intentional functionalization or natural processes. To gain a better understanding of the effect and risk of fullerenes on environmental health, it is necessary to acquire reliable data on the parent compounds and their congeners. Whereas currently established quantification methods generally focus on analysis of unmodified fullerenes, we discuss in this review the occurrence and analysis of oxidized fullerene congeners (i.e., their corresponding epoxides and polyhydroxylated derivatives) in the environment and in biological specimens. We present possible strategies for detection and quantification of parent nanomaterials and their various derivatives.

Testing the resistance of fullerenes to chemothermal oxidation used to isolate soots from environmental samples

We tested the resistance of five different fullerenes (C(60), C(70), C(76/78) mix, and C(84)) to chemothermal oxidation at 375 °C (CTO-375), a method that has been used and tested for quantifying black carbon (BC) and CNTs in soils and sediments. C(60) survived CTO-375 the most (50%), while C(70) was the fullerene with the lowest survival rate (<1%). Standard additions of C(60) to soil and sediment reference materials yielded recoveries between 18 and 36%. Although lower than recoveries previously observed for soot and CNTs, these results demonstrate the capability of CTO-375 to partially isolate C(60) from solid environmental matrices. Standard additions of C(70), C(76/78), and C(84) yielded slightly higher survival rates when added to soil and sediment than in their pure form. These results indicate that the mineral matrices of these samples probably had a catalytic effect towards C(60) and a protective effect towards C(70), C(76/78), and C(84) during CTO-375.

Quantitative analysis of fullerene nanomaterials in environmental systems: a critical review

The increasing production and use of fullerene nanomaterials has led to calls for more information regarding the potential impacts that releases of these materials may have on human and environmental health. Fullerene nanomaterials, which are comprised of both fullerenes and surface-functionalized fullerenes, are used in electronic, optic, medical, and cosmetic applications. Measuring fullerene nanomaterial concentrations in natural environments is difficult because they exhibit a duality of physical and chemical characteristics astheytransition from hydrophobic to polar forms upon exposure to water. In aqueous environments, this is expressed as their tendency to initially (i) self-assemble into aggregates of appreciable size and hydrophobicity, and subsequently (ii) interact with the surrounding water molecules and other chemical constituents in natural environments thereby acquiring negative surface charge. Fullerene nanomaterials may therefore deceive the application of any single analytical method that is applied with the assumption that fullerenes have but one defining characteristic (e.g., hydrophobicity). Our findings include the following: (1) Analytical procedures are needed to account for the potentially transitory nature of fullerenes in natural environments through the use of approaches that provide chemically explicit information including molecular weight and the number and identity of surface functional groups. (2) Sensitive and mass-selective detection, such as that offered by mass spectrometry when combined with optimized extraction procedures, offers the greatest potential to achieve this goal. (3) Significant improvements in analytical rigor would result from an increased availability of well characterized authentic standards, reference materials, and isotopically labeled internal standards. Finally, the benefits of quantitative and validated analytical methods for advancing the knowledge on fullerene occurrence, fate, and behavior are indicated.

Evaluation of carbon nanocones/disks as sorbent material for solid-phase extraction

The potential of carbon nanocones/disks as sorbent material in solid-phase extraction (SPE) procedures has been evaluated. For this aim, a model analytical problem, the determination of chlorophenols in water samples, was selected. An accurately weighed amount of 20mg of purified carbon nanocones/disks was packed in 3 mL commercial SPE cartridges. Once conditioned, up to 8 mL of water samples can be preconcentrated without analyte losses. The chlorophenols were eluted by using 200 microL of hexane. Aliquots of 2 microL of the organic extract were injected in the gas chromatograph-mass spectrometer for separation and quantification. The purification of the commercial nanocones/disks to reduce the presence of amorphous carbon has been successfully achieved by heating the carbon nanocones/disks at 450 degrees C for 20 min. Detection limits of chlorophenols were in the range 0.3-8 ng mL(-1) by using 2 mL of sample. Moreover, excellent average recovery values (98.8-100.9%) have been obtained after the analysis of water samples from different nature. Finally, the performance of the carbon nanocones/disks as sorbent material has been compared with that of multiwalled carbon nanotubes, providing the former better results under the experimental conditions assayed.

Fullerenes for aromatic and non-aromatic N-nitrosamines discrimination

The detection of N-nitrosamines (NAms) in water supplies is an environmental and public health issue because many NAms are classified as probable human carcinogens. Non-aromatic (aliphatic and cyclic) NAms are more toxic than aromatic ones as their maximum admissible concentration is limited in drinking water (20-2000ngL(-1)). From that premise, a simple and novel method to discriminate between both fractions of NAms according to their toxicity was proposed. An automatic solid-phase extraction unit containing two sequential sorbent columns was constructed. A sample volume of 25mL was passed through a C(60) fullerene column in which only the aromatic fraction was retained, and the effluent was then passed through a Merck LiChrolut EN column where the non-aromatic fraction was retained. Following elution of the non-aromatic NAms with 150microL of ethyl acetate-acetonitrile (9:1), 1microL of the extract was injected into a GC/MS. A comparative study of C(60) and C(70) fullerenes and nanotubes revealed C(60) fullerene to be the best choice to selectively retain the aromatic fraction. The method exhibits a linear range of 15-20,000ngL(-1); limits of detection of 4-15ngL(-1); and an RSD of approximately 5%. Recoveries throughout the whole method were between 95% and 102% for six non-aromatic NAms spiked into several types of waters. Our study demonstrates that a simple and fast SPE system (10min per sample) with a customary GC-MS instrument permits the quantification of these amines in complex matrices with considerable sensitivity and selectivity.

Analysis of sample of highly water-soluble Th-symmetric fullerenehexamalonic acid C66(COOH)12 by ion-chromatography and capillary electrophoresis

Ion chromatography (IC) was used to establish isomer purity of the highly water-soluble sample of fullerenehexamalonic acid, Th-symmetric hexakis-adduct C66(COOH)12. Sharp and symmetric peaks were obtained by IC using 1.0 M potassium hydroxide as eluent and applying gradient elution program. The identity of the two largest peaks in the chromatogram was assigned to Th-C66(COOH)12 and C66H(COOH)11. The developed IC procedure can be used for the semi-quantitative determination of the extent of the partial decarboxylation of the sample. As an alternative analytical technique, a CE procedure was introduced and its performance against IC was compared for this particular case.

Surfactant coated fullerenes C60 as pseudostationary phase in electrokinetic chromatography

In the present paper, surfactant coated fullerenes C(60) (SC-C(60)) have been proposed as a novedous pseudostationary phase to improve separation of different aromatic compounds. The target analytes were beta-lactams antibiotics, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and amphenicols. In all cases, the analytes interacted with the pseudostationary phase producing an important enhancement on resolution. The results were compared with those obtained with surfactant coated carbon nanotubes (single-walled and multi-walled nanotubes), showing that in the proposed conditions, fullerenes C(60) were advantageous as interactions between the analytes and the pseudostationary phase were more effective. Finally, the procedure was applied to pharmaceuticals and urine samples, with satisfactory results.

HPLC separation of fullerenes on two charge-transfer stationary phases

Two charge-transfer stationary phases were prepared by immobilizing p-nitrobenzoic acid and naphthyl acetic acid onto silica. The nitrophenyl moiety and the naphthyl moiety were grafted to silica gel through the spacer of aminoalkyl silanes. The HPLC separation of C60, C70, and higher fullerenes on the new stationary phases was also studied. The influence of mobile phase and column temperature on the separation of C60 and C70 was examined, respectively. The retentions of C60 and C70 on the two stationary phases increased with decreasing toluene content in the mobile phase or with increasing column temperature. Higher fullerenes can be separated well using toluene as the mobile phase on the stationary phase of p-nitrobenzoic acid-bonded silica.

Application of Carbon Sorbents for the Concentration and Separation of Metal Ions

Solid-phase extraction is an attractive approach in the preparation of many kinds of samples prior to analysis; highly selective sorbents are desirable for this purpose. The objective of this review is to provide updated information about carbon-based sorbents, their interaction modes and potential application for the concentration and separation of metal ions from environmental samples prior to their determination. New selective phases such as fullerenes and carbon nanotubes are described. Selected examples illustrate the potential of these sorbents.

Fullerenes as sorbent materials for benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene isomers preconcentration

A simple and novel SPE system for benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene isomers (BTEX) compounds in water is proposed in which samples are directly propelled from a 15 mL glass vial through a sorbent column by means of a needle, thereby avoiding evaporative losses and the sorption of BTEX on the manifold materials. Following elution with 150 microL of ethyl acetate, 1 microL of extract is injected into a gas chromatograph-mass spectrometer system. A comparative study of various sorbent materials (C60 fullerene, Tenax TA, and RP-C18) revealed C60 fullerene to be the best choice in terms of sensitivity (a likely result of its increased sample breakthrough volume), precision (the surfactant medium used to prepare samples minimizes evaporative losses), selectivity (C60 fullerene only interacts with nonpolar aromatic compounds), and reusability (columns containing 60 mg of C60 fullerene remain serviceable for at least 6 months). This C60 fullerene-based method exhibits a linear range of 0.1-100 microg/L, a detection limit of 0.04 microg/L, and an RSD of ca. 3%. It was applied to the determination of BTEX in various types of water including sea and waste water with good precision.

Speciation of Organometallic Compounds in Environmetal Samples by Gas Chromatography after Flow Preconcentration on Fullerenes and Nanotubes

The development of a simple speciation method for the determination of lead (trimethyllead(I), dimethyllead(II), triethyllead(I), and diethyllead(II)), mercury (methylmercury(I), ethylmercury(I), mercury(II)), and tin (n-butyltin(III), di-n-butyltin(II), tri-n-butyltin(I), tin(IV)) compounds in environmental samples was described. The potential of C70 fullerenes and multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWNTs) as sorbents was investigated for the first time; this study revealed that there are no significant differences between them in terms of sensitivity, selectivity, precision, and reusability. Comparative studies showed that MWNTs and C60 and C70 fullerenes were superior to graphitized carbon black and RP-C18 for the extraction of the 11 compounds studied. The accuracy of the MWNT method was evaluated from recovery values with two standard reference coastal sediments, and good concordance in the results were obtained. Detection limits of 0.5-2 pg/mL were obtained when using a sorbent column containing 160 mg of MWNTs (sample breakthrough, 50 mL of water). The method was successfully applied to the determination of lead, mercury, and tin compounds in water and coastal sediment samples with satisfactory results.

Present and future applications of carbon nanotubes to analytical science

This article reviews the impact of carbon nanotubes on analytical science, and the main current and future applications of carbon nanotubes in this field. Given that it is necessary to solubilize carbon nanotubes for many applications, we consider the procedures developed to achieve this. The use of carbon nanotubes in analytical chemistry as a target analyte and as an analytical tool is also discussed. Chromatographic and electrophoretic methods used to separate and characterize carbon nanotubes are presented. The use of carbon nanotubes as an analytical tool in filters and membranes, as sorbent material for solid phase extraction, in electrochemical (bio)sensors, and in separation methods is discussed. It is clear that while nanotubes are being tested for use in many different fields, their truly enormous potential has yet to be realized in analytical chemistry.