A novel colorimetric and fluorescent probe based on a core-extended perylene tetra-(alkoxycarbonyl) derivative for the selective sensing of fluoride ions

A novel fluoride (F-) calorimetric and fluorescent probe (P1) based on a core-extended perylene tetra-(alkoxycarbonyl) (PTAC) derivative was developed. The probe exhibited high sensitivity and selectivity for distinguishing F- from other common anions through significant changes of the UV-Vis and fluorescence spectra. Job's plot analysis revealed that the stoichiometry of the P1-F- interaction is 1 : 1. The association constant between P1 and F- was estimated to be 9.7 x 10(2) M-1 and the detection limit of F- was about 0.97 RM. An approximately 76 nm red-shift in the absorption and fluorescent quenching response was observed when F - was associated with P1. The emission intensity (I-574 decreased linearly along with the F - concentration from 3 x 10(-5) M to 2 x 10(-4) M. The mechanism of intermolecular proton transfer (IPT) was deduced based on the changes in the absorption, fluorescence, electrochemistry, and H-1 NMR titration spectra. The density functional theory (DFT) theoretical results of the P1-F- complex are in good agreement with the experimental results. The rapid detection of F- ions in the solid state and living cells was also studied.