A turn-on fluorescent probe based on Si-rhodamine for sensitive and selective detection of phosgene in solution and in the gas phase

In this paper, a new near-infrared and fluorogenic fluorescent probe (SiR-amide) based on Si-rhodamine for the detection of phosgene is reported. The fast and sensitive phosgene detection was achieved by the conversion reaction of an amide to a nitrile, which resulted in a large fluorescence turn-on response. The response time of SiR-amide to phosgene was 4 min with a detection limit of 8.9 nM in solution. Moreover, easy-to-use paper test strips for fluorescence detection of phosgene gas had also been prepared. All of this work provided a very promising fluorescent probe for rapid, selective and sensitive detection of phosgene both in solution and in the gas phase.