Sensors (Nov 2017)

Interaction between Diethyldithiocarbamate and Cu(II) on Gold in Non-Cyanide Wastewater

  • Nguyễn Hoàng Ly,
  • Thanh Danh Nguyen,
  • Kyung-Duk Zoh,
  • Sang-Woo Joo

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/s17112628
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 17, no. 11
p. 2628

Abstract

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A surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) detection method for environmental copper ions (Cu2+) was developed according to the vibrational spectral change of diethyldithiocarbamate (DDTC) on gold nanoparticles (AuNPs). The ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) absorption spectra indicated that DDTC formed a complex with Cu2+, showing a prominent peak at ~450 nm. We found Raman spectral changes in DDTC from ~1490 cm−1 to ~1504 cm−1 on AuNPs at a high concentration of Cu2+ above 1 μM. The other ions of Zn2+, Pb2+, Ni2+, NH4+, Mn2+, Mg2+, K+, Hg2+, Fe2+, Fe3+, Cr3+, Co2+, Cd2+, and Ca2+ did not produce such spectral changes, even after they reacted with DDTC. The electroplating industrial wastewater samples were tested under the interference of highly concentrated ions of Fe3+, Ni2+, and Zn2+. The Raman spectroscopy-based quantification of Cu2+ ions was able to be achieved for the wastewater after treatment with alkaline chlorination, whereas the cyanide-containing water did not show any spectral changes, due to the complexation of the cyanide with the Cu2+ ions. A micromolar range detection limit of Cu2+ ions could be achieved by analyzing the Raman spectra of DDTC in the cyanide-removed water.

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