Molecular recognition meets microcontroller: calixarene-based fluorescent sensors for selective detection of 2-nitrobenzaldehyde
Abstract
) and the lowest detection limit (LOD = 0.25 µM), while showing negligible response to other common nitroaromatics. HR-MS titration and density functional theory (DFT) calculations reveal the formation of a 1 : 1 host-guest complex stabilized by hydrogen bonding and dipole-dipole interactions, driving an interamolecular charge-transfer quenching mechanism. Furthermore, the optimized fluorescent sensor was successfully integrated with a microcontroller (Arduino) RGB detection platform. The developed device demonstrated good analytical performance in water samples, with recovery values of 93.5-96.5%, % RSD below 1.5%, while maintaining relative errors below 6% compared to a standard fluorescence spectrometer. Overall, the proposed approach presents a simple, cost-effective, and reliable platform for on-site 2-NBZ detection.
Fields of Study & Subjects
Molecular Sensors and Ion Detection
Luminescence and Fluorescent Materials
Analytical Chemistry and Sensors
Publication details
- Journal / source
- The Analyst
- Publisher
- Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC)
- Volume
- 151
- Issue
- 6
- Pages
- 1709–1723
- Publication date
- 1 January 2026
- Language
- EN