Luminescent CuS nanotubes as silver ion probes

CuS nanotubes (NTs) made up of nanoparticles were successfully prepared in large quantities in an O/W microemulsion system under low temperature. Based on the characteristics of synchronous fluorescence spectroscopy (SFS), a new method with high sensitivity and selectivity was developed for rapid determination of silver ion with functional copper sulphide (CuS) nanotubes as a fluorescence probe. Under optimal conditions, functional copper sulphide displayed a calibration response for silver ion over a wide concentration range from 1.0 × 10⁻¹⁰ to 1.0 × 10⁻⁸ mol L⁻¹. The limit of detection was 0.5 × 10⁻¹⁰ mol L⁻¹ and the relative standard deviation of eight replicate measurements for the highest concentration (1 × 10⁻⁸ mol L⁻¹) was 3%. Compared with several fluorescence methods, the proposed method had a wider linear range and improved the sensitivity. Furthermore, the concentration dependence of the synchronous fluorescence intensity is effectively described by a Langmuir-type binding isotherm.