Polystyrene-block-poly(2-vinylpyridine)-conjugated silver nanoparticles as colorimetric sensor for quantitative determination of Cartap in aqueous media and blood plasma

Development of novel materials for different analytical applications such as optical sensors is one of the major topics of modern scientific research. In this study, a nanosensor based on highly stable silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) conjugated with polystyrene-block-poly(2-vinyl pyridine) [PS-b-P2VP or P(S-VP)] copolymer was synthesized using two-phase one pot protocol. The nanosensor was characterized by UV–vis spectroscopy, zetasizer, FTIR and AFM. Polystyrene-block-poly(2-vinylpyridine)-conjugated silver nanoparticles [P(S-VP)-AgNPs] were further utilized as colorimetric sensor for thiocarbamate pesticide, cartap. P(S-VP)-AgNPs nanosensor allowed for rapid and quantitative detection of cartap in concentration range of 0.036–0.36 μgL−1 with detection limit as low as 0.06 μgL−1. The prepared sensor efficiently detected cartap in presence of other interfering pesticides. P(S-VP)-AgNPs demonstrated great potential for in situ detection of cartap in water and blood plasma.