Surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) has been widely applied for rapid and sensitive detection of various chemical and biological targets. Here, we incorporated a syringe filter system into the SERS method to detect pesticide ferbam in water. Silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) were aggregated by sodium chloride (NaCl) to form nanoclusters that could be trapped in the pores of the filter membrane to from the SERS-active membrane. Then samples were filtered through the membrane. After capturing the target, the membrane was taken out and air dried before measuring by a Raman instrument. After optimization of various parameters, the developed filter SERS method was able to detect the fungicide ferbam as low as 2.5 ppb and had a good quantitative capability. The developed method was successfully applied in three water samples, including double distilled water, tap water, and pond water. The test has also been carried out on site using a portable Raman instrument. This study shows the filter based SERS method improve the detection capability in water samples, including the sensitivity and portability, and could be applied in the detection of various toxins in real world water samples.

Filter based approach to rapid and sensitive SERS detection of ferbam in environmental water

252nd National Meeting (2016)

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