Colorimetric Assay for Al3+ Based on Alizarin Red S-functionalized Silver Nanoparticles

Abstract

Aluminium is absorbed by the intestines and is rapidly transported into bone, where it disrupts mineralization and bone cell growth and activity. Because aluminium is sequestered in bone for long periods, its toxic effects are cumulative. Even intermittent or low-dose use of aluminium-based materials (food, juice, drinking water containers) adds to the total load in bone. Development of fast and inexpensive sensors for aluminium, therefore, is still of great interest. We report here a simple, low-cost yet very sensitive and selective colorimetric assay for rapid (2-min) detection of Al3+ in water with a 0.12-μM detection limit based on Alizarin Red S-functionalized silver nanoparticles.