It is critical to design a novel and simple bifunctional
sensor
for the selective and sensitive detection of ions in an aqueous media
in environmental samples. As a result, in this study, tetraphenylethene
hydrazinecarbothioamide (TPE-PVA), known as probe 1, was successfully
synthesized and characterized as having impressive photophysical phenomena
such as aggregation-induced emission (AIE) and mechanochromic properties
by applying mechanical force to the solid of probe 1. The emission
of the solid of probe 1 changed from turquoise blue to lemon yellow
after grinding, from lemon yellow to parakeet green after annealing
at 160 °C, and to arctic blue after fuming with DCM. Such characteristics
could lead to a variety of applications in several fields. The probe
was implemented and demonstrated remarkable selectivity and sensitivity
toward mercury(II) and silver(I) ions by substantially switching off
emission over other cations. Following an extensive photophysical
analysis, it was discovered that detection limits (LOD) as low as
0.18344 and 0.2384 μg mL
–1
for Hg
2+
and Ag
+
, respectively, are possible with a quantum yield
(Φ) of 2.26. Probe 1 was also explored as a Hg
2+
and
Ag
+
paper strip-based sensor and kit for practical use.
The binding mechanisms of probe 1 (TPE-PVA) with Hg
2+
and
Ag
+
were confirmed by
1
H NMR titration. These
results could lead to the development of reliable onsite Hg
2+
and Ag
+
fluorescent probes in the future.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.