A tetraphenylethylene-based acylhydrazone Schiff base macrocycle exhibiting aggregation-induced emission and “turn-on” detection of Al3+ ions

A tetraphenylethylene-based acylhydrazone macrocycle (H8L) was designed and synthesized via Schiff base condensation reaction. The [2 + 2] molecular structure of H8L was determined via 1H NMR, 13C NMR, elemental analysis, ESI-MS, and single crystal X-ray diffraction. The “ESIPT + AIE” and selective recognition properties of macrocycle H8L were investigated via UV–vis absorption spectra and fluorescence emission spectra. The results showed that macrocycle H8L exhibited an obvious AIE characteristic in THF/H2O solution with varying water fraction, and displayed a selective “turn-on” response to Al3+ ions in the solution of THF/H2O (V: V = 4: 1). In addition, the visualization of latent fingerprints and the application of H8L on test strips were performed as well.