Synthesis and fluorescence study of the grafted salicylidene Schiff base onto SBA-15 mesoporous silica for detecting Zn2+ traces in aqueous medium

Abstract

A selective fluorescent chemosensor was prepared by anchoring pyridine-2-carbaldehyde Schiff base ligand onto mesochannels of organically modified SBA-15 mesoporous silica. The resulting organic-inorganic hybrid mesoporous chemosensor was characterized by X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform IR spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, UV-visible diffuse reflectance spectra, and photoluminescence spectra. All the results support the idea that successive attachment of the ligand moiety onto one-pot-modified mesoporous scaffold has not altered its basic hexagonally arranged structure. Upon introducing trace amounts of zinc ions into aqueous solution, remarkable enhancement in the fluorescence was observed.