Novel Single Emissive Component Tridurylboron-TPU Solid Polymer Ratiometric Fluorescence Thermometers.

Abstract

Temperature measurements with high spatial resolution and accuracy can provide crucial data for understanding the changing process of microregion. Non-contact ratiometric fluorescence thermometers have received widespread attention for their sensitivity and interference resistibility. However, polymer and organic dye thermometers with such ratiometric fluorescence are very rare, and their applicability and processability are limited. In this study, novel tridurylboron compounds PPB1, PPB2, and PPB3 are designed and synthesized. They exhibit significant temperature responsive ratiometric fluorescence when dispersed in thermoplastic polyurethane elastomers (TPU). With a self-referencing feature and protection of TPU solid polymer, such fluorescence thermometers possess strong interference resistibility. From -10° to 60°C, the fluorescence peak of PPB1-TPU system redshifted by 41nm, the fluorescence color changes from blue to green. For the fluorescence ratiometric temperature measurement procedure, the absolute sensitivity is 14.5%°C-1 (40°C) and relative sensitivity is 6.3%°C-1 (35°C), which is much higher than reported solid polymer fluorescence thermometers. The temperature-responsive ranges can be adjusted by altering the types of polymer substrate and the number of the substituents. Such tridurylboron-TPU polymer fluorescence thermometers can be applied in aqueous environment and processed into devices of various shapes and sizes, demonstrating great potential for application.