Highly stable terbium(III)-based metal-organic framework for the detection of m-dinitroaromatics and Fe3+in water

A highly luminescent three-dimensional terbium-based metal organic framework [Tb(cpia)(H2O)2]nnH2O (1) has been employed for the selective detection of m-dinitroaromatics and Fe3+. Stability tests suggest that compound 1 exhibits good stability in hot water and acidic and basic conditions within the pH range of 4-13. The strong green emission of 1 could be efficiently quenched by 1,3-dinitrobenzene, 2,4-dinitrotoluene, 2,6-dinitrotoluene in ethanol. Significantly, compound 1 can also be used to detect 1,3-dinitrobenzene in aqueous phase with high sensitivity and low detection limit (1.89 mu M), indicating the detection of m-dinitroaromatics in aqueous medium can be realized. Furthermore, compound 1 also exhibits superior luminescence quenching behavior towards Fe3+ with high sensitivity and selectivity among various metal cations. In addition, the luminescence quenching mechanisms towards different analytes are also discussed in detail. These results demonstrate that compound 1 is a promising luminescent sensor for the simultaneous selective detection of mdinitroaromatics and Fe3+ in water.