Carbon nanostructures in polyvinyl alcohol-based silver nanocomposites for serum albumin concentration sensing

Abstract

Introducing carbon nanostructures in polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) matrix as strengthening elements by solution dispersion method is already known. Here, the plasmonic sensor surfaces interspersed with carbon nanomaterials are studied for their durable and better sensing capabilities. Carbon quantum dots (CQD) and Multiwall carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) are the carbon nanostructures used in the polyvinyl alcohol-silver nanocomposite to develop plasmonic sensing surfaces. Fiber optic unclad U-bent surfaces are encapsulated in the carbon nanostructure dispersed PVA-silver nanocomposite. The surface is further functionalized with the polyelectrolyte poly(allylamine) hydrochloride (PAH) for better bioconjugation. In the available sensor literature, the evaluation of the sensing layer stability after multiple sensing trials is almost nil. In this work, the sensor surface plasmonic performance after multiple sensing trials is evaluated. The results show that plasmonic biosensors with improved sensing performances can be developed by introducing carbon nanomaterials in PVA-silver nanocomposites. The developed sensor heads are used to sense Bovine Serum Albumin (BSA) concentration changes.