Convenient cucurbit[8]uril-based supramolecular fluorescent probe for efficient detection of phenolic contaminants

The serious environmental pollution problem has been one of the topics of concern as people become more aware of environmental protection. Phenolic compounds, which are widely used in various industries, have become one of the important water pollutants, causing great harm to humans, animals and plants, and it is crucial to develop a convenient and rapid method for the detection of trace phenolic contaminants. Among the many methods for detecting phenolic pollutants, fluorescent probes stand out for their high sensitivity, rapidity and efficiency. In this paper, a water-soluble fluorescent guest molecule (DPA) was successfully synthesized and self-assembled with cucurbit[8]uril (Q[8]) by host-guest interaction for the detection of phenolic contaminants, which can effectively distinguish 20 common phenolic contaminants, and more interestingly, the addition of 2,4,6-trinitrophenol not only effectively quenched the fluorescence, but also formed a ternary complex to settle down from the aqueous solution. This effective supramolecular fluorescence probe provides a new method for the rapid identification of phenolic contaminants in water.