a novel fluorescent chemosensor based on phosphorus ylides for sensitive detection of copper ions

Abstract: copper is an abundant transition metal with very high flexibility and thermal-electrical conductivity. this element is one of the few metals that exist in metallic form in nature. cu2+ ions play a crucial role in the metabolism of carbohydrates and lipids. so, this ion is essential for human, animals and plants. but high concentration of copper in the environment leads to water and food contamination. thus, development of a simple and sensitive method for determination of cu2+ is of great attention. various techniques including spectrophotometry, spectrofluorometry, electrochemistry, chromatography and radioactive analysis, have been used for the determination of cu2+ ions. among these methods, spectrofluorometry has the advantages of simplicity, speed, sensitivity and cost-effectiveness. therefore, in the present study, a novel fluorescent chemosensor based on phosphorus ylides coupled to spectrofluorimetric analysis was used to detection of copper ions. the intensity of emission was increased by addition of copper ions. to enhance the sensitivity, the factor affecting the emission such as ph, reaction time and ligand concentration were optimized. under the optimum conditions the calibration curve was linear over the range of 0.1 – 5.0 μm and limit of detection was 0.03 μm.