Nanostructured cantilever sensor using with Pani/MWCNT-COOH nanocomposites applied in the detection of pheromone

The present work aims to develop a nanostructured cantilever sensor with Pani/MWCNT-COOH nanocomposite, applied in the detection of methyl 2,6,10-trimethyltridecanoate. This substance is the main component of the sexual pheromone of the brown stink bug. The cantilever sensor was functionalized with alternated layers of Pani and MWCNT-COOH operated in dynamic mode to detect the pheromone compound. The functionalized cantilever sensor presented a specific binding to methyl 2,6,10-trimethyltridecanoate that induced a change in the resonance frequency response. The alteration in the resonance frequency showed a relationship with pheromone concentration. The detection limit was 2.18 fg/mL (ppq_v) for methyl 2,6,10-trimethyltridecanoate, with 0.03% hysteresis, 2.62 Hz/fg sensitivity, 50.4 ms of response time, and 99.7% reversibility. The nanostructured cantilever sensor did not show response to interference substances. In this way, the results showed that the nanostructured cantilever sensor with Pani/MWCNT-COOH nanocomposite is a very promise method to detect sexual pheromone from brown stink bug in small amounts, and has great potential for application in agriculture for pest control and insect infestation.