Sensitivity enhancement in the colorimetric detection of lead(II) ion using gallic acid–capped gold nanoparticles: Improving size distribution and minimizing interparticle repulsion

We have developed a colorimetric assay for the highly sensitive and selective detection of Pb 2+ by narrowing the size distribution of gallic acid–capped gold nanoparticles (GA–AuNPs) and minimizing electrostatic repulsion between each GA–AuNP. We unveil that the particle size and size distribution of GA–AuNPs could be controlled by varying the pH of HAuCl 4 with fixed concentrations of HAuCl 4 and GA. When the pH of the precursor solution (i.e., HAuCl 4) was adjusted from 2.2 to 11.1, the average diameter of GA–AuNPs was decreased from 75.1 nm to 9.3 nm and their size distribution was reduced from 56.6−93.6 nm to 9.0−9.6 nm. The colorimetric sensitivity of the Pb 2+-induced aggregation of GA–AuNPs could be improved using narrow size distribution of GA–AuNPs. Moreover, further enhancement of the colorimetric sensitivity of GA–AuNPs toward Pb 2+ could be achieved by adding NaClO 4 to minimize electrostatic repulsion between GA–AuNPs, which provide a small energy barrier for Pb 2+ to overcome. Under the optimum conditions (1.0 mM NaClO 4 and 20 mM formic acid at pH 4.5), the selectivity of 9.3 nm GA–AuNPs for Pb 2+ over other metal ions in aqueous solutions is remarkably high, and its minimum detectable concentration for Pb 2+ is 10 nM. We demonstrate the practicality of 9.3 nm GA–AuNPs for the determination of Pb 2+ in drinking water. This approach offers several advantages, including simplicity (without temperature control), low cost (no enzyme or DNA), high sensitivity, high selectivity, and a large linear range (10.0–1000.0 nM).