Conversion of natural egg-shell to 3D flower-like hydroxyapatite agglomerates for highly sensitive detection of As3+ ions

Inorganic arsenic ions such as As3+ in the environment have become one of the potential risks for human health. In this work, 3D flower-like hydroxyapatite agglomerates were converted from natural egg-shell powder under mild conditions and applied on the detection of As3+. The effect of conversion time on the determination capability was investigated. This biomaterial has been demonstrated to be highly sensitive to trace As' with a limit of detection down to 0.034 ppb. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.