Tough, Eu 3+ -Induced Luminescent Hydrogel as Flexible Chemosensor for Real-Time Quantitative Detection of Zn 2+ Ion.

Here, a novel tough luminescent hydrogel with Europium was fabricated using a facile copolymerization process by introducing 2,2':6',2"-terpyridine (TPy) into a dual physical cross-linked hydrogel. The obtained P(NAGA-co-MAAc)/Eu/TPy (x) (x refers to the feed ratio of NAGA to MAAc) hydrogels not only show outstanding mechanical performances (fracture strength, ∼2.5 MPa), but also give a special ability of rapid detection to low concentration of zinc ions. Attractively, the theoretical limits of detection (LOD) of the hydrogel sensors were calculated as 1.6 μM, which is acceptable within the WHO limit. Furthermore, the continuous change in fluorescence of P(NAGA-co-MAAc)/Eu/TPy (10) strips upon contact with Zn 2+ can be clearly observed by the naked eyes with the aid of a portable UV lamp, resulting in semi-quantitative naked-eye detection through a standard colorimetric card. Moreover, by identifying the RGB value of the hydrogel sensor, it can also realize quantitative analysis. Therefore, excellence in sensing, simplicity in structure and conveniently in using make P(NAGA-co-MAAc)/Eu/TPy (10) hydrogel as a superior fluorescent chemosensor of Zn 2+ ions. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.