Experimental spectroscopic investigation and electrochemical sensor studies of facile and controllable synthesis of ferrocene-based chiral Schiff base compounds

Abstract

BackgroundThis work aims at preparing a novel series of low-cost, easily-synthesizable, and modifiable ferrocene-based chiral Schiff base compounds designed to use different application areas of the electrochemical sensor properties. MethodsFerrocene-based chiral Schiff bases (1–4) have been synthesized by the reactions of ferrocene carboxaldehyde and different chiral primary amines in the presence of CH3COOH as a catalyst under mild conditions. After that, the reaction of ferrocene-based chiral Schiff bases (1–4) and NaBH4 in methanol gave the ferrocene-based chiral Schiff base (1a-4a) compounds, respectively. The target ferrocene-based chiral Schiff base compounds were characterized by various spectroscopic techniques and the obtained experimental and spectroscopic findings show that they were synthesized successfully and fairly consistent with the proposed molecular structures. Significant findingsThe electrochemical properties of ferrocene-based chiral Schiff base compounds were investigated by cyclic voltammetry techniques (CV) at GCE. This work provides a new idea that ferrocene-based chiral Schiff base compounds in reduced form (1a-4a) are more suitable for the fabrication of a ganciclovir-sensitive as an electrochemical sensor. The electrochemical sensor was fabricated for ganciclovir using compound (2a), which exhibited the best electroactivity among these compounds due to the increase of electrocatalytic activity in the electrooxidation process of ganciclovir.