A Robust Strontium Coordination Polymer with Selective and Sensitive Fluorescence Sensing Ability for Fe 3+ Ions.

Exploration of sensitive and selective fluorescence sensors towards toxic metal species is of great importance to solve metal pollution issues. In this work, a three-dimensional (3D) strontium coordination polymer of Sr 2 (tcbpe) (H 4 tcbpe = 1,1,2,2-tetrakis(4-(4-carboxy-phenyl)phenyl)ethene) has been synthesized and developed as a fluorescent sensor to Fe 3+ ions. Sr 2 (tcbpe) shows a mechanochromic fluorescence with emission shifting from blue of the pristine to green after being ground. Notably, based on a fluorescence quenching mechanism, Sr 2 (tcbpe) displays a sensitive and selective fluorescent sensing behavior to Fe 3+ ions with a detection limit of 0.14 mM. Moreover, Sr 2 (tcbpe) exhibits high tolerance to water in a wide pH range (pH = 3-13), demonstrating that Sr 2 (tcbpe) is a potential fluorescent sensor of Fe 3+ in water.