In this work, a novel colorimetric chemosensor (BIAD) containing azo chromophore, 1,5dihydroxynaphthalene, and benzimidazole was synthesized and characterized by using IR, 1H,13C NMR, and mass spectral data, and elemental analysis. The cation recognition studies (including fourteen metal cations) exhibited that the synthesized azo dye can act as a rapid, sensitive, and selective colorimetric chemosensor for detecting Cu2+ ions. The addition of Cu2+ ions to the BIAD solution, changed immediately the solution color from purple to bluegreen, which could be observed by the naked eye. Comparison of the UV/Visible spectra of BIAD and (BIAD+Cu2+) revealed a red shift from 543 nm to 616 nm, which confirms the formation of a complex between Cu2+ cations and BIAD molecules. The result of Job’s plot indicated that the stoichiometry binding ratio of BIAD to Cu2+ is 1: 1. The limit of detection (LOD) was found for BIAD toward Cu2+ ion to be 0.10 μM. Furthermore, the BIAD-based test paper strips were successfully used for the rapid detection of Cu2+ ions (<1 sec) in the aqueous solution (H2O-DMSO, 9: 1).
