A colorimetric probe for the real-time naked eye detection of cyanide and hydroxide ions in tap water: experimental and theoretical studies

Veikko Uahengo; Johannes Naimhwaka; Likius S. Daniel; Ateeq Rahman; Mohamed I. Elzagheid; Lydia Rhyman; Ponnadurai Ramasami; Ping Cai

doi:10.1039/C9AN01481K

A colorimetric probe for the real-time naked eye detection of cyanide and hydroxide ions in tap water: experimental and theoretical studies

Veikko Uahengo,

*^a Johannes Naimhwaka,^a Likius S. Daniel,^a Ateeq Rahman,^a Mohamed I. Elzagheid,^b Lydia Rhyman,^cd Ponnadurai Ramasami^cd and Ping Cai^e

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* Corresponding authors

^a Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Namibia, 340 Mandume Ndemufayo Avenue, Windhoek, Namibia
E-mail: vuahengo@unam.na, vuahengo@gmail.com
Fax: +264 61 206 3465
Tel: +264 61 206 3465

^b Department of Chemical and Process Engineering, Jubail Industrial College, Jubail Industrial City 31961, Saudi Arabia

^c Computational Chemistry Group, Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, University of Mauritius, Réduit 80837, Mauritius

^d Department of Applied Chemistry, University of Johannesburg, Doornfontein Campus, Johannesburg 2028, South Africa

^e College of Chemistry and Molecular Sciences, Wuhan University, Wuhan, Hubei 430072, China

Abstract

Herein, a colorimetric sensor (L) based on a naphthyl derivative bearing hydrazone receptors was synthesized via a one-step reaction process, and its recognition properties towards biologically important anions in an acetonitrile–water mixture were investigated by naked-eye observation and UV-Vis and ¹H NMR spectroscopy. The molar addition of anions, such as TBAF⁻, TBAOH⁻, TBACN⁻ and TBAAcO⁻, induced a significant red shift in the charge transfer band (Δλ = 73 nm, from 337 nm to 410 nm), in agreement with visible “naked eye” detectable colorimetric activities; in addition, soaked-in-L paper strips were prepared, which could significantly discriminate cyanide (KCN) and hydroxide (NaOH) ions dissolved in tap water via the litmus test method. This study was complemented by density functional theory computations to gain more insight into the interaction between L and anions.

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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1039/C9AN01481K
Article type: Paper
Submitted: 03 Aug 2019
Accepted: 17 Sep 2019
First published: 18 Sep 2019

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Analyst, 2019,144, 6422-6431

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A colorimetric probe for the real-time naked eye detection of cyanide and hydroxide ions in tap water: experimental and theoretical studies

V. Uahengo, J. Naimhwaka, L. S. Daniel, A. Rahman, M. I. Elzagheid, L. Rhyman, P. Ramasami and P. Cai, Analyst, 2019, 144, 6422 DOI: 10.1039/C9AN01481K

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A colorimetric probe for the real-time naked eye detection of cyanide and hydroxide ions in tap water: experimental and theoretical studies

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A colorimetric probe for the real-time naked eye detection of cyanide and hydroxide ions in tap water: experimental and theoretical studies

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