A novel fluorometric measurement system based on triple complex for mercury (II) determination

[Display omitted] •Trace amount of mercury (II) analyses were performed in time-resolved fluorometer.•New fluorometric system based on thioxanthone derivative was used for trace analyses of mercury (II) ion.•This new system has economic, rapid and sensitive properties without the need for any covalent bonded material.•This new system enables to analyse of mercury (II) in wastewater treatments and biological samples. T-BSA binary complex was formed with non-covalent interactions between fluorometric 2-thioxanthone thioacetic acid and stabilizator bovine serum albumin by fluorescence emission spectroscopy as a sensible and practical method. T-BSA concentration at 1.77 × 10−4 M was obtained as the most suitable and reliable amount for the formation of T-BSA-Hg(II) triple complex. Trace amount of Hg(II) analyses were achieved by this new fluorometric triple complex system as the primary aim. The emission spectra from 350 nm to 650 nm were assayed on fluorometer for Hg(II) concentrations from 1.77 × 10−8 M to 3.53 × 10−4 M under an excitation wavelength of 337 nm. Hg(II) was found to increase the emission intensity of T-BSA by 50% even at 1.77 × 10−7 M Hg(II). So this new system has strong sensitivity to Hg(II) ion. T-BSA-Hg(II) triple complex formation and its fluorometric characterization have not been investigated in literature yet. This study is critically important to provide Hg(II) analyses in wastewater treatments and biological samples for further studies.