Novel azo- and bisazo-5-pyrazolone dyes and their application as a colorimetric chemosensor for naked eye recognition of Cu2+

Abstract

In this study, novel azo- and bisazo-5-pyrazolones (1/2a, b, and 1/2c, d, respectively) were synthesized. The structures of the new compounds were characterized using FTIR, UV–Vis., 1H NMR, 13C NMR-APT, and HRMS spectroscopic methods. 1H-NMR study revealed that the compounds are in hydrazone- form in solution. Among fourteen metal nitrate salts, the azo-5-pyrazolones showed a colorimetric response only to the Cu2+ ion, whereas the new bisazo-5-pyrazolones did not cause a specific color change to only one cation. The produced ligand changed from orangey-yellow to very light yellow, making it possible to identify Cu2+ without the need for spectroscopic equipment. Compound 1b [4-((2,4-dimethylphenyl)diazenyl)-2-(naphthalene-1-yl)-5-phenyl-2,4-dihydro-3H-pyrazole-3-one)] was taken as a representative example of the new azo-5-pyrazolones for the chemosensor research. The Cu(1b)2 complex was also synthesized and characterized. The binding ratio between the 1b sensor and Cu2+ was found to be 2:1 (ligand:metal) from the structural characterization of Cu(1b)2 and using Job's plot method. The pH study showed that even if the pH changes, the Cu2+ ion can still bind to the 1b receptor. In the reversibility experiment, when EDTA was added to the (1b+Cu2+) solution, the spectrum returned to the 1b spectrum. The interference study showed the selectivity of 1b with Cu2+ even in the presence of other cations. A study of the detection limit (LOD) revealed considerable sensitivity towards Cu2+metal cation using absorption titration method and LOD value was found to be 4.31 μM. The association constant (Ka) of (1b+Cu2+) was determined to be 0.79×105M−1 using the Benesi-Hildebrand plot.