Polymeric ion sensors with multiple detection modes achieved by a new type of click chemistry reaction

The rapid growth of the click chemistry concept enables the production of a wide variety of functional polymers. Among the new generation of click chemistry reactions, the highly efficient addition reactions between electron-rich alkynes and cyano-based acceptors, referred to as alkyne-acceptor click chemistry, have found promising application possibilities as polymeric chemosensors. The donor-acceptor chromophores, formed by this click chemistry reaction, feature intense charge-transfer (CT) bands in the visible region, but they are hardly fluorescent. Importantly, the chromophores possess two different nitrogen atoms, namely the aniline nitrogen and cyano nitrogen. The recognition of some specific metal cations by different nitrogen atoms in the polymers led to different modes of changes in the absorption spectra. For example, the hard acid of Fe(3+) ion was recognized by the aniline nitrogen, resulting in a decrease in the CT bands. On the other hand, the soft acid of the Ag(+) ion was captured by the cyano nitrogen, leading to a bathochromic shift in the CT bands. Some specific anions, such as CN(-), F(-), and I(-) ions, were also recognized by a chemodocimetric detection mode, discoloring the original solutions. When the CT bands decreased upon the addition of analytes, the polymers were found to serve as turn-on fluorescent sensors. In this perspective, the detailed detection modes of the new polymeric chemosensors are fully described.