A novel Lu3+ fluorescent nano-chemosensor using new functionalized mesoporous structures

A new Lu3+ sensitive fluorescent chemosensor is designed using 8-hydroxyquinoline functionalized mesoporous silica with highly ordered structure (LUS-SPS-Q). The characterization of LUS-SPS-Q showed that the organized structure has been preserved after the post grafting procedure. The synthesized material showed a selective interaction with Lu3+ ion, most probably due to the presence of the fluorophore moiety at its surface. The emission intensity of the Lu3+-bound mesoporous material increases with an increase in concentrations of Lu3+ ion. Addition of other mono-, di-, trivalent ions resulted in insignificant change in the fluorescent intensity. The enhancement of fluorescence is attributed to the strong covalent binding of Lu3+ ion. The linear response range of Lu3+ chemo-sensor was from 1.6 x 10(-7) to 1.0 x 10(-5) mol L-1. The Limit of detection obtained was 8.2 x 10(-8) mol L-1 and the pH range which the proposed chemo-sensor can be applied was 3.3-8.3. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.