Water-Stable Eu₆-Cluster-Based fcu-MOF with Exposed Vinyl Groups for Ratiometric and Fluorescent Visual Sensing of Hydrogen Sulfide

Abstract

Detection of H₂S in the biological system has attracted enormous attention in recent years. In this work, a new vinyl-functionalized metal-organic framework (MOF), [(Me₂NH₂)₂] [Eu₆(μ₃-OH)₈(BDC-CH═CH₂)₆(H₂O)₆] (Eu-BDC-CH═CH₂, BDC-CH═CH₂ = 2-vinylterephthalic acid), was synthesized under solvothermal conditions. The vinyl groups in the ligands can not only modulate the "antenna effect" of the ligand on Eu³⁺ ions but also serve as an exposed reactive site to allow for the quantitative detection of H₂S by Eu-BDC-CH═CH₂. The ratiometric fluorescent probe has the advantages of water stability, acid-base stability (pH = 2-11), fast response (<2 min), high selectivity, and sensitivity (LOD = 38.4 μM). We also used Eu-BDC-CH═CH₂ to detect and analyze H₂S in tap and lake waters, demonstrating the potential of the probe for biological and environmental applications. In addition, the MOF-based agarose hydrogel film allows for the visual detection of H₂S via a smartphone by identifying the RGB values. The vinyl-functionalized MOF can thus be a powerful sensing platform for H₂S.