Eu-MOF fluorescent fiber detector based on polyacrylonitrile: A highly selective and sensitive luminescence sensor for trace amounts of Fe3+

Abstract

From a medical point of view, Fe3+ cannot be absorbed by the human body and excessive Fe3+ had a complex effect, which could destroy the DNA structure and cause cancer. The detection of Fe3+ in blood had turned into an issue closely related to human health. Herein, Eu(BPDA)1.5phen@PAN fluorescent fibers were successfully prepared by electrospinning using polyacrylonitrile (PAN) as substrate from self-assembled metal organic framework materials (MOFs). In the short response time, the fluorescence quenching phenomenon could be observed by naked eye when excited by ultraviolet light. The functionalized lanthanide Eu-MOF@PAN exhibited a characteristic red light emission dominated by Eu3+ ultra-sensitive electric dipole transition (5D0→7F2) under ultraviolet excitation and strong stability in aqueous solution. Compared with powdered Eu-MOFs, Eu-MOF@PAN had better thermal stability. Eu-MOF@PAN exhibited unique pertinence and excellent sensitivity in the detection of Fe3+, the fluorescence dynamic quenching was deduced by fluorescence lifetime fitting. Compared with the functionalized MOFs previously reported, Eu-MOF@PAN had a lower limit of detection (0.063 μM). This study provided a promising strategy for manufacturing flexible sensors for detecting low concentrations of Fe3+.