Optosensor based on multiwall carbon nanotubes and quantum dots incorporated into a molecularly imprinted polymer for ciprofloxacin detection

Abstract

This thesis aimed to develop an optosensor based on the fluorescence quenching of quantum dots composited with molecularly imprinted polymer and carboxylic functionalized multiwall carbon nanotubes (COOH@MWCNT-MIP-QDs) for the detection of ciprofloxacin. The quantum dots composited with MIP provided a good selectivity and stability. The carboxylic functionalized multiwall carbon nanotubes helped to enhance the adsorption ability which can reduce the analysis time for ciprofloxacin detection. The effect of various parameters were optimized i.e. pH of buffer solution, incubation time, concentration of COOH-functionalized multiwall carbon nanotubes and ratio of template to monomer to cross-linker. Under the optimum conditions, the calibration curves were linear over the concentration range of 0.10 to 1.0 μg L-1 and 1.0 to 100.0 μg L-'. The limit of detection was 0.066 μg L-'. The developed method was successfully applied for the determination of ciprofloxacin in chicken muscle and milk samples. The satisfactory recoveries were obtained in the range of 82.6 to 98.4 % and the relative standard deviations were less than 8%. The developed method was compared with HPLC method and the results were in good agreement with HPLC. The advantages of this method including high sensitivity, good selectivity, simple to use, cost-effective and rapid.