Magnetic FeO nanoparticles decorated phosphorus-doped biochar-attapulgite/bismuth film electrode for smartphone-operated wireless portable sensing of ultra-trace multiple heavy metal ions.

Pollution caused by both forestry wastes and heavy metals has increasingly drawn attention owing to environmental safety concerns. After essential oil is extracted from Cinnamomum camphoras (L.), the branches are used as forestry wastes to prepare a phosphorus-doped biochar-attapulgite/bismuth film electrode decorated with magnetic FeO nanoparticles (MBA-BiFE). The smartphone-operated wireless portable sensor is employed for the simultaneous ultratrace voltammetric detection of multiple heavy metal ions (Cd, Pb, and Hg). Cd, Pb, and Hg exhibit excellent electrochemical responses in linear ranges of 0.1 nM-5 μM, 0.01 nM-7 μM, and 0.1 nM-3 μM with limits of detection equal to 0.036, 0.003, and 0.011 nM, respectively. The recoveries of MBA-BiFE for Cd, Pb, and Hg are 93.6-109.9%, 86.0-107.5%, and 94.8-104.6%, respectively, and the RSD values for repeated measurements of Cd, Pb, and Hg are 4.2%, 2.8%, and 3.3%, respectively. A machine learning model based on an artificial neural network algorithm is constructed to enable a smart determination of ultratrace hazardous multiple metal ions. The portable sensor based on the screen-printed integrated three-electrode sensor modified using MBA-BiFE demonstrates advantages and practicability in outdoor detection, compared with conventional sensors based on MBA-BiFE. This study provides a smartphone-operated wireless portable sensing technique for high-potential applications in environmetallomics or agrometallomics using forestry waste-derived biochar as substrate for electrode preparation. HIGHLIGHTS: • FeO decorated phosphorus-doped biochar-attapulgite/bismuth film electrode. • A smartphone-operated sensor for analysis of multiple heavy metal ions. • An Artificial neural network model for smart analysis of Cd, Pb, and Hg.