Effect of metal doping (M = Sc, V, Ti, Fe and Mn) on the sensing performance of the Si12C12 nanocage towards the penicillamine drug molecule: a DFT study

In this work, we have investigated the electronic properties of the pristine and metal(M)-doped Si12C12 (M = Sc, V, Ti, Fe and Mn) nanocages and their sensing performances towards the penicillamine (PCE) molecule using DFT calculations at the B3LYP/LanL2DZ/6-311G(d,p) method. The results reveal that the doping of the Si12C12 nanocage with a metal atom significantly improves its reactivity, therefore their interaction with the nucleophilic centres of the PCE molecule becomes easy. The most stable complexes were obtained when the PCE molecule was chemisorbed onto the MSi12C12 nanocages through its oxygen atom with adsorption energies which vary from -18.0 to -40.2 kcal mol(-1). The results also demonstrate that the MSi12C12 possess high sensitivity towards the PCE molecule. The presence of solvent sharply reduces the adsorption energy of the PCE molecule over the clusters surface, resulting in a substantial decrease in the recovery time. A comparative study between the values of the sensitivity of the studied clusters in liquid phase suggests that the FeSi12C12 and MnSi12C12 clusters present high sensing performances compared with the other clusters, so they are regarded as the best sensors to detect the PCE drug molecule.<br /> [GRAPHICS]