U.S. chemists have developed a new method of detecting cyanide in drinking water and other sources, offering numerous advantages over existing technology.
The researchers -- Idaho State University's Jeffrey Rosentreter, Yegor Timofeyenko and Susan Mayo -- note cyanide is critical in industries that include the manufacture of fertilizers, plastics and steel, with 1.4 million tons of cyanide produced worldwide each year.
But cyanide also is toxic and its presence in the environment must be monitored closely. Existing instruments, however, require large samples, take a long time to produce results, require specially trained operators, are not precise and have other drawbacks.
The researchers' cyanide sensor overcomes those disadvantages, while being inexpensive and portable. The sensor, for example, identifies toxins in water instantaneously and targets the specific form of cyanide toxic to humans and other organisms. The scientists say that makes their new technology especially attractive for safety and security applications.
The research appears in an article scheduled for the Jan. 1 issue of the journal Analytical Chemistry.
