A highly selective and sensitive fluorescent probe for quantitative detection of Hg2+ based on aggregation-induced emission features

摘要

A pi-conjugated cyanostilbene derivative of (2)-2-(4-nitrophenyl)-3-(4-(vinyloxy)phenyl)acrylonitrile (CN-vinyl) had been designed, synthesized and confirmed by the standard spectroscopic analyses. CN-vinyl possesses an unusual high emissive aggregation-induced emission (AIE) feature in a tetrahydrofuran/water mixture (2:8, v/v). The fluorescence intensity of CN-vinyl can be quenched linearly with the addition of Hg2+ in a range of 0-50 mu M with a correlation coefficient of R-2=0.9957. The detection limit of Hg2+ is 37 nM. The mechanism for Hg2+-mediated optical properties of CN-vinyl is due to the selective cleavage of vinyl group by Hg2+. Accuracy of the proposed methodology was evaluated by means of the recovery study in real samples and the analyzing certified reference material of the standard solution of Hg2+. By this novel strategy, CN-vinyl can be used for quantitative detection of Hg2+ as well as the presence of other physiological relevant metal ions. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.