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Semi-quantitative determination of cationic surfactants in aqueous solutions using gold nanoparticles as reporter probes

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Abstract

Concentrations of cationic surfactants in aqueous solutions have been estimated on the basis of changes in the color of gold nanoparticles, used as reporter probes. We have shown that the colors of gold nanoparticles with anionic protective groups on their surfaces shift from red to indigo/purple and then back to red in a range of cationic surfactant solutions in which concentrations vary from very low to above the theoretical CMCs. The color changes occur near the theoretical CMCs, presumably because the presence of surfactant micelles in the solution prevents the gold nanoparticles from aggregating. We have used gold nanoparticles as reporter probes to determine the concentrations of cationic surfactants in products such as hair conditioners, which often contain large amounts of alkyltrimethylammonium halides. Although this approach can only provide an estimate, it can be performed simply by addition of a given amount of gold nanoparticles to a series of diluted solutions, without the need for instruments or labor-intensive procedures.

Photographs of a series of diluted hair conditioner solutions with added gold nanoparticles

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Acknowledgements

We would like to thank the National Science Council of Taiwan for financial support.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Applied Chemistry, National Chiao Tung University, Hsinchu, 300, Taiwan

    Chi-Lap Kuong, Wei-Yu Chen & Yu-Chie Chen

  2. Institute of Molecular Science, National Chiao Tung University, Hsinchu, 300, Taiwan

    Yu-Chie Chen

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  1. Chi-Lap Kuong
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  2. Wei-Yu Chen
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Correspondence to Yu-Chie Chen.

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Kuong, CL., Chen, WY. & Chen, YC. Semi-quantitative determination of cationic surfactants in aqueous solutions using gold nanoparticles as reporter probes. Anal Bioanal Chem 387, 2091–2099 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-006-1046-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-006-1046-5

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