ISSN print edition: 0366-6352 ISSN electronic edition: 1336-9075 Registr. No.: MK SR 9/7 Published monthly

Terpyridine functionalized α-cyanostilbene derivative as excellent fluorescence and naked eyes Fe²⁺ probe in aqueous environment

Xuan He, Gao-Bin Zhang, Zi-Xin Chi, Peng-Fei Dai, Jian-Yan Huang, and Jia-Xiang Yang

Anhui University, Hefei, People’s Republic of China

E-mail: jxyang@ahu.edu.cn

Abstract: A novel carbazole derivative (L) functionalized by terpyridine was designed and synthesized. Its structure was fully characterized by FT-IR, HR-MS, ¹H NMR spectra. L formed J-aggregates and possessed aggregation-induced emission enhancement property in aqueous environment. In addition, compound L showed specific response to Fe²⁺ in UV–vis spectra at 557 nm in EtOH–H₂O mixed solvent, owing to metal-to-ligand-charge-transfer (MLCT). The emission quenched much more sharply than other metal ions when adding Fe²⁺. The interaction between compound L and Fe²⁺ was analyzed by UV–vis and fluorescence spectrum titration. The limit of detection was calculated to be 1.63 μM. The stoichiometric of L and Fe²⁺ was 2:1 confirmed by Job’s plots. Competition experiment indicated that other metal ions caused little interference. In this way, L could be a fluorescent and “naked eyes” probe for Fe²⁺ detection. This dual mode Fe²⁺ sensor can be considered to have potential value in practical applications.

Keywords: Terpyridine; Carbazole derivative; Fe²⁺ fluorescent probe

Full paper is available at www.springerlink.com.

DOI: 10.1007/s11696-017-0214-8

Chemical Papers 71 (11) 2209–2215 (2017)