Potentiometric discrimination of organic amines by liquid membrane electrodes based on a long alkyl chain derivative of ?-cyclodextrin

Abstract

A long alkyl chain derivative of β-cyclodextrin (6A,6B,6C,6D,6E,6F,6G-hepta-S-dodecyl-6A, 6B,6C,6D,6E,6F,6G-heptathio-β-cyclodextrin tetradecaacetate) was examined as a new type of sensory element of an ion-selective electrode for organic amines. Poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) matrix liquid membrane electrodes based on this host were prepared by using several membrane solvents, among which 2-fluoro-2′-nitrodiphenyl ether (FNDPE) was found to be by far most effective for potentiometric responses by the cyclodextrin host. Guest-induced potential changes were examined at pH 5.0 for several groups of protonated organic amine guests having different types of nonpolar moieties. The magnitude of the guest-induced potential change was in the order of 2-phenylethylamine > 1-adamantanamine > benzylamine > cyclohexanamine > dopamine. Potentiometric discrimination was also observed for the positional isomers of di- and trimethoxybenzylamines, though the discrimination between the isomers of monomethoxybenzylamines was negligible. These potentiometric selectivities were quite different from those for a liquid membrane electrode containing no particular sensory element. No appreciable effect was observed by addition of potassium tetrakis(p-chlorophenyl)borate as a fixed anionic site. Such a characteristic feature of this cyclodextrin-based liquid membrane electrode was explained in terms of the availability of an inclusion complex between the cyclodextrin host and each guest in a geometry that would be stable at the membrane surface.