Multifunction hydrogen-bonded organic framework aerogel platform for detection and removal of heavy metal ions in pear juice

Heavy metal ions (HMIs) in food pose significant health risks due to their bioaccumulation and toxicity, necessitating effective detection and remediation methods. This study explores a multifunctional hydrogen-bonded organic framework (HOF-16) wrapped in sodium alginate (SA) to form a stable HOF-16/SA aerogel for detecting and removing HMIs in pear juice. The HOF-16 fluorescence probe exhibits excellent sensitivity with limits of detection of 0.49, 0.60, and 0.44 μmol/L for Pb(II), Cu(II), and Cd(II), respectively. The maximum adsorption capacities of HOF-16/SA aerogel for Pb(II), Cu(II), and Cd(II) are 284.69, 248.08, and 183.94 mg/g, respectively. The removal efficiency of HOF-16/SA aerogel for HMIs in pear juice exceeds 98 % without negative impacts. Sensitive detection of HMIs is attributed to the fluorescence quenching effect caused by electron transfer, while electrostatic interactions and complexation enhance the effective adsorption performance. This study provides a HOF-aerogel platform with great potential for detecting and removing HMIs from food matrix.