Dual-functional coordination polymers with high proton conduction behaviour and good luminescence properties

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Inorganic Chemistry
• Nanotechnology

Background:

• Coordination polymers offer tunable properties for diverse applications.
• Developing materials with both high proton conductivity and sensing capabilities is a key challenge.

Purpose of the Study:

• Synthesize and characterize novel coordination polymers.
• Evaluate their potential as proton conductors and fluorescent sensors.
• Investigate their performance in hybrid membranes and for dichromate ion detection.

Main Methods:

• Hydrothermal synthesis of coordination polymers.
• X-ray crystallography for structural analysis.
• AC impedance spectroscopy for proton conductivity measurements.
• Solution casting for hybrid membrane preparation.
• Fluorescence spectroscopy for sensing applications.

Main Results:

• Two coordination polymers, [Cd(5-hip)(H2O)3]n and [Zn(5-hip)(H2O)3]n, were synthesized with 1D chain structures forming 3D networks.
• Proton conductivities of 1.58 × 10-3 S cm-1 and 5.27 × 10-4 S cm-1 were achieved at high humidity.
• Hybrid membranes showed 1.97 and 1.58 times higher proton conductivity than pure SPEEK.
• The complexes detected Cr2O72- with low detection limits (0.8 μM and 1 μM).

Conclusions:

• The synthesized coordination polymers possess dual functionality for proton conduction and fluorescence sensing.
• Hybrid membranes demonstrate improved proton conductivity, suggesting potential for fuel cell applications.
• The materials show promise for sensitive and selective detection of dichromate ions in aqueous solutions.