A fluorescent sensor utilizing aggregated luminol-capped cadmium nanoparticles for detecting formaldehyde in preserved fish

A selective sensor for detecting formaldehyde in stored fish has been developed using luminol-capped cadmium aggregated (Cd-Lum) material. Luminol-capped cadmium aggregated material was synthesized through a straightforward single-step process conducted under ambient conditions. The sensor attains high sensitivity and specificity through the use of aggregated luminol-capped cadmium. The sensor exhibits excellent sensitivity, specificity, and selectivity, allowing for effective formaldehyde detection even in complex matrices. Experimental results highlight excellent performance in reliability, response time, and detection limits, ensuring food safety and quality in fish preservation. The sensor shows near 100% recovery rates with % RSD values below 3%, ensuring consistent results for formaldehyde detection in locally sourced fish. Additionally, a convolutional neural network model achieved 96% accuracy in predicting fish freshness from fluorescence intensity, validated by analyses and direct formaldehyde measurements. These results address key gaps in real-time detection methods, offering transformative potential for monitoring environmental contaminants like formalin.