FLUORIMETRIC MONITORING OF MOLECULAR IMPRINTED POLYMER RECOGNITION EVENTS FOR ALUMINIUM

Abstract

ABSTRACT Novel molecular imprints were prepared against aluminium. Sensing materials were prepared via non-covalent imprinting technique, using the aluminium(III)–morin chelate as the template. Based on the fluorescent properties of the chelate, it was possible to design a selective optical flow-through sensor for Al3+. The affinity of the polymer binding sites was higher for aluminium than for other di- and trivalent ions (e.g., Be2+, Ca2+, Mg2+, Eu3+, Zn2+, Fe3+), suggesting that the nature of the metal ion, its ionic radius, and the metal–morin stoichiometry play important roles in the ionic recognition. Keywords: Molecular imprinted polymerMetal ion recognitionSensorOptosensing ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Dr. S. Al-Kindy thanks SQU for Sabbatical Scholarship. Acknowledgment is made to DGICYT (Proj. #PB97/1280) for financial support and to J. L. Suárez-Rodríguez for assistance during this research.