Weakly-bound Cu(II) is toxic to various aquatic organisms and this toxicity is proportional to its concentration in the surrounding environment. Cu(II) can bind to and damage the gill-membranes and other tissues of various fish species. Thus, monitoring the concentrations of Cu(II) in aquatic environments is of great importance. Currently employed techniques for sensing Cu(II) are complicated and exhibit some drawbacks including inabilities to distinguish weakly-bound Cu(II) from the inert form and to eliminate interference of other metals. In addition, while sensors containing ligands exhibiting a response in fluorescence signals have been used for sensing free metal ions, Cu(II) remains a challenge due to its paramagnetic nature that quenches fluorescence. Through tailored ligand design, we have developed a fluorescent polymer indicator that is capable of accurately detecting low concentrations of Cu(II) in the presence of other interfering metal ions. Here, we report a bifunctional polypyridyl ligand to be incorporated in the proposed sensor.

Ratiometric Cu(II) sensor: Design synthesis and characterization of a bifunctional Cu(II) ligand

251st National Meeting (2016)

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