Double-Color Lanthanide Metal-Organic Framework Based Logic Device and Visual Ratiometric Fluorescence Water...

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Analytical Chemistry
• Chemical Engineering

Background:

• Water is a common contaminant in pharmaceuticals and chemical products.
• Accurate water content determination is crucial for quality control in these industries.
• Existing water assay methods can be time-consuming or lack sensitivity.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a novel, ultrasensitive, and rapid method for water detection in pharmaceuticals.
• To create a double-color ratiometric fluorescent sensor based on a lanthanide metal-organic framework (MOF).
• To design a portable, visual assay device for on-site water content determination.

Main Methods:

• Synthesis of a lanthanide MOF, Eu-dipicolinic acid/2-aminophthalic acid (Eu-DPA/PTA-NH2), as a fluorescent sensor.
• Development of a one-to-two logic gate analytical device utilizing fluorescence responses.
• Fabrication of a paper-based microsensor for visual water detection in solid pharmaceuticals.

Main Results:

• The developed MOF sensor exhibits ultrasensitive (LOD 0.01% v/v) and broad-range (0-100% v/v) linear response to water.
• The analytical device successfully performs direct water content analysis using logic gate outputs.
• The paper-based microsensor provides rapid (20 s), stable (30+ days), and accurate (<9.8% error) visual water assays for solid pharmaceuticals.

Conclusions:

• This study presents the first MOF-based double-color ratiometric fluorescent water sensor.
• An innovative water analytical logic device and a paper-based microsensor for visual water assay were successfully developed.
• The developed technology offers a promising solution for rapid, point-of-care visual water determination in solid pharmaceutical samples.