With the aim to develop pH-paper-like lead ion (Pb 2+ ) sensing materials, we demonstrate a colorimetric strip, which relies on a SiO 2 nanoparticle (NP) decorated polydiacetylene embedded polyacrylonitrile nanofibrous membrane (PAN NFM), that undergoes a brilliant blue-to-red color transition as well as 'Turn-On' fluorescence upon incubation with Pb 2+ . The introduction of an amino acid (glycine) headgroup into a supramolecularly assembled 10,12-pentacosadiynoic acid results in a Pb 2+ -induced chromic conjugated polymer that is quickly photopolymerizable, rapidly responsive to Pb 2+ and specifically identifiable. Moreover, the SiO 2 NPs are certified as an efficient sensitivity promoter when their content reaches 0.5 wt% in the strip. With this understanding, the color change that is caused by 0.24 mM Pb 2+ at ambient temperature can be easily perceived by the naked eye, which indicates the superiority of our strip compared with previous approaches, and it is also noteworthy that a fluorescent signal could also be produced in 2 min. Furthermore, RGB (red-green-blue) digital parameters obtained from images of the strips and automatic read outs via a smartphone were processed statistically through principal component analysis and then used to elaborate the standard curve and quantify Pb 2+ concentration. This methodology for assaying and quantifying Pb 2+ avoids time-consuming sample preparation, expensive laboratory techniques, and specialized personnel required to carry out conventional analytical methods. † Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available: The experimental procedures of assembly of PDA-Gly liposomes and Pb 2+ detection based on PDA-Gly liposomes, the details of 1 H and 13 C NMR spectroscopy for the structural conrmation of PCDA-Gly, the optical images of three types of strips from le to right display the color changes caused by temperature, and the corresponding CR% of the strips at each temperature point upon heating from 20 to 50 C, the sensing performance of PDA-Gly liposomes, and schematic of a representative procedure used to calculate principle component by a scalable RGB technique under the assistance of a smartphone. UV-vis spectra and CR value of Strip 0.5 in the presence of Pb 2+ (3 mM) and various other metal ions (30 mM), including Na + , K + , Ca 2+ , Fe 2+ , Ni 2+ , Hg 2+ , Cu 2+ , Zn 2+ , Co 2+ , and Cd 2+ in HEPES buffer. Insets show the corresponding color change photographs. See Fig. 5 (A) The time-dependent CLSM images of Strip 0.5 before and after incubation with 0.24 mM Pb 2+ and (B) their normalized fluorescence intensity and distribution (l ext ¼ 405 nm). 9728 | J. Mater. Chem. A, 2015, 3, 9722-9730 This journal is