PPCPs are a new class of environmental contaminants accumulating in water and soils, being its presence potentially pernicious for the environment and human health.  Nevertheless, no commercial sensors for monitoring and detecting these pollutants have been developed so far. This is due the development of sensors adequate to each type of molecule is an arduous task and presents scientific and technological challenges. First, it is necessary to find out adequate functionalized molecules with high selectivity to the target molecule, and to increase the sensitivity of the system in order to ensure the detectability of at least nano-molar concentrations of this molecule. Furthermore, a major challenge is the presence of the target molecules in an aqueous medium together with spurious molecules, forming together a complex matrix solution. Accordingly, a sensor to be developed must be created for real water samples and it should ensure highly precise and reliable detection of the target molecules.

            From this, the concept of impedance electronic tongue, in which the impedance at different frequencies is measured in an array of sensing nanostructures and then is statistically analyzed,  seems an interesting approach to develop a sensor to be used in real water samples.

As one intends to detect a triclosan, or  5-chloro-2(2,4-dichlorophenoxy)-phenol,  in real water samples and to achieve that goal, a simple sensor prototype will be developed by preparing an array of triclosan sensing nanostructures, and the electrical impedance of those nanostructures will be characterized for different complex matrixes used   in the preparation of triclosan solutions.