Simultaneous quantification of gold and silver nanoparticles in spiked buffered river surface water using fluorescence spectroscopy and U-PLS/RBL.

Abstract

BACKGROUND: The accelerated production and use of engineered nanoparticles in commercial products will inevitably result in their release into aquatic environments, raising concerns about potential ecological and health impacts. Distinguishing synthetic nanomaterials from naturally occurring colloids in environmental samples remains a major analytical challenge because of matrix complexity and the coexistence of multiple nanoparticle types with diverse sizes, shapes, and surface chemistries. RESULTS: In this study, we present a second-order multivariate calibration strategy based on unfolded partial least squares coupled with residual bilinearization (U-PLS/RBL) for the simultaneous quantification of gold nanoparticles and silver nanoparticles in water samples. Fluorescence excitation-emission matrices were recorded using rhodamine 6G and a carbazole derivative as fluorescent probes. The quenching effects induced by the nanoparticles were used to construct quenching matrices, which were then analyzed by U-PLS/RBL. The proposed methodology achieved low detection limits in the picomolar range, high sensitivity, and excellent recovery (92-110%) in both river surface water and tap water samples, without requiring prior separation or pretreatment. SIGNIFICANCE: These results highlight the robustness and cost-effectiveness of U-PLS/RBL for nanoparticle analysis and demonstrate its potential as a valuable tool for environmental monitoring of engineered nanomaterials.

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