Flexible and adhesive tape decorated with silver nanorods for in-situ analysis of pesticides residues and colorants.

A flexible adhesive tape decorated with SERS-active silver nanorods (AgNRs) in the form of an array nanostructure is described. The tape was constructed by transferring the AgNRs nanostructures from silicon to the transparent tape by a "paste & peel off" procedure. The transparent, sticky, and flexible properties of commercial tapes allow almost any SERS-inactive irregular surface to be detected in-situ by pasting the SERS tape onto the position to be analyzed. Three examples for an analytical application are presented, viz. determination of (a) tetramethylthiuram disulfide and thiabendazole (two pesticides), (b) colorants in the gel of a writing pen, and (c) the fluorophore Rhodamine B. The tetramethylthiuram disulfide on apple surface was rapidly detected with a LOD of 28.8 ng·cm. The AgNRs effectively quenched the fluorescence of the matrix and fluorophores, this enabling the colorants and Rhodamine B to be identified. The results demonstrated that the SERS tape can be used for versatile in-situ detection. Conceivably, it may find applications in food analysis, non-invasive identification, environmental monitoring, and in other areas of daily life. Graphic abstract A flexible and adhesive SERS active tape decorated with silver nanorods (AgNRs) arrays was constructed through a "paste & peel off" method. It can be used as a versatile in situ analysis platform for various applications.