A highly sensitive dual-channel chemical sensor for selective identification of B4O72-

A newly designed salamo-like chemosensor H2BTS for dual-channel identification of B4O72- was synthesized. A number of detailed studies of the sensor H2BTS are carried out, including fluorescence, UV-Vis and nuclear magnetic resonance spectra. Sensor H2BTS could recognize B4O72- by UV-Vis and fluorescence spectral analyses, and enables naked-eye recognition, changing color from nearly colorless to yellow. Besides, the addition of B4O72- to sensor H2BTS resulted in a bright green fluorescence at 365 nm of UV light. Furthermore, it is found that H2BTS and B4O72- have excellent binding capacity, the binding constant up to 7.88 x 10(8) M-1, the lower limit of detection (LOD = 4.27 x 10(-12) M) and the limit of quantity (LOQ = 1.42 x 10(-11) M) are also calculated. Cyclic detection of B4O72- is achieved by added HCl and NaOH to sensor H2BTS solution. In addition, the results of test strip experiments and water sample test experiments showed that the test strips had good effect on the detection of B4O72- and good recovery rate of B4O72- in water samples, which can be used in daily production and life.

Automated summary

A newly designed salamo-like chemosensor H2BTS was synthesized for dual-channel identification of B4O72-. Detailed studies showed that H2BTS could recognize B4O72- by UV-Vis and fluorescence spectral analyses, with high binding capacity and excellent detection limits. The sensor also exhibited good performance in detecting B4O72- in water samples, making it suitable for daily production and life applications.