Abstract: Starch nanoparticles (SNPs) were fluorescently labeled with 1-pyrenebutyric acid and pyrene fluorescence was employed to detect nitrated organic compounds (NOCs) in solution and on paper surfaces. Fluorescence quenching of the pyrene-labeled SNPs (Py-SNPs) by NOCs such as nitromethane, nitrotoluene (MNT), dinitrotoluene (DNT), and trinitrotoluene (TNT) was characterized in DMSO and water. Since pyrene is insoluble in water, the fluorescence of the pyrene excimer that dominated the fluorescence spectrum of the Py-SNPs dispersed in water was used for the fluorescence quenching experiments. The efficient binding of the aromatic NOCs to the pyrene aggregates of Py-SNPs dispersed in water was used to detect NOCs by Py-SNPs adsorbed at the surface of paper sheets. The low quantities of aromatic NOCs detected by the Py-SNPs demonstrate the potential of Py-SNP-coated paper for the detection of such compounds.