Novel zirconium optical sensor based on immobilization of Alizarin Red S on a triacetylcellulose membrane by using principle component analysis artificial neural network

A novel zirconium optical sensor was designed with a common metal indicator, Alizarin Red S. The water-soluble indicator was lipophilized in the form of an ion pair with cetyltrimethylammonium bromide, and subsequently, immobilized on a triacetylcellouse membrane. The calibration curve is linear in the range of 0.39–3.1 μg ml−1 of Zr4+ ions with a limit of detection of 0.08 μg ml−1. The determination range was improved to 0.19–4.22 μg ml−1 by applying the principle component analysis artificial neural network algorithm with back propagation of errors. The response time of the optode was within 5 min depending on the concentration of Zr4+ ions. The sensor could readily be regenerated with a hydrochloric acid solution (0.01 M) and was fully reversible. The capability of the sensor was tested in different matrices.