Preparation of highly sensitive sensors based on polystyrene microspheres for the detection and removal of Hg2+ ions

Detection and the simultaneous removal of mercury ions are of vital importance. In this study, fluorescent monomers, small molecular sensors, were first synthesized using 4-bromo-naphthalic anhydride as precursor. These double bond bearing sensors were then grafted to polystyrene (PS) microspheres through dispersion polymerization. The sensors still retained their detecting ability when they were anchored on the surfaces of PS microspheres. Upon the addition of Hg2+ ions to the PS microspheres, both the color and the fluorescence intensity changed, which could be employed to detect Hg2+ ions. The absorption capacity of the two kinds of PS microspheres reached 0.557 mg g−1 and 0.628 mg g−1 respectively. The PS microspheres still remain their fluorescence and absorption even used for five times. These polymeric highly sensitive chemosensors may see their applications in purification of polluted environments. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2013, 51, 4592–4600