MIL-88B(Fe)-NH2: an amine-functionalized metal-organic framework for application in a sensitive electrochemical sensor for Cd2+, Pb2+, and Cu2+ ion detection

Abstract

We propose here an electrochemical platform for multi-heavy metal ion detection in water based on MIL-88B(Fe)-NH2, an amine-functioned metal-organic framework (MOF) for modifying the surface of a glassy carbon electrode (GCE). Herein, MIL-88B(Fe)-NH2 with abundant functionalized amine groups can play the role of capture sites for the enrichment of metal ions before electrochemical oxidation sensing. MIL-88B(Fe)-NH2 was synthesized under optimized conditions through a solvothermal method and characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transition electron microscopy (TEM), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), cyclic voltammetry (CV) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) techniques. MIL-88B(Fe)-NH2 was then drop-casted on GCE to electrochemically determine the Cd2+, Pb2+ and Cu2+ ion concentrations by differential pulse voltammetry (DPV). The electrochemical sensor exhibits excellent electrochemical performance toward Cd2+, Pb2+ and Cu2+ ions in the large linear ranges of 0.025-1.000 μM, 0.3-10.0 μM and 0.6-10.0 μM with limits of detection that are 2.0 × 10−10 M, 1.92 × 10−7 M and 3.81 × 10−7 M, respectively. The fabricated sensor also shows high reliability and good selectivity. This MIL-88B(Fe)-NH2 application strategy is promising for the evaluation of various heavy metal ions in water.