Mercury has a long history of causing environmental problems and health effects. Improved measurements would aid in remediation efforts and safeguard vulnerable populations. Initial research performed at the University of California, Berkeley and Lawrence Berkeley National Lab showed the suitability of plasmonic films of gold nanoparticles as a selective and sensitive detector for mercury in vapor samples. This work describes the research efforts to develop the fundamental technology into a viable field-ready instrument. By combining a thermal-catalytic sample decomposition stage with a plasmonic detector, soil samples can be analyzed straightforwardly with no chemicals pretreatment, no external gas canisters, and with moderate energy and space requirements. The system response is linear with total mercury mass in the sample for several different sample compositions (see figure). Further steps in the development and ongoing challenges will be addressed. Summary Figure: Summary of system response to various samples: CRS is Carson River Soil, MSI is a NIST standard from Montana, and a Water Standard is displayed as H<sub>2</sub>O Std.

From the bench to the field: Translating a novel plasmonic mercury sensor into a portable instrument for soils and sediments

253rd National Meeting (2017)

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