Weak Coupling Strategy to Construct High-Performance Sm/Tb-Doped Lanthanide Coordination Polymer Luminescent Sensor...

Area of Science:

• Materials Science and Engineering
• Analytical Chemistry
• Nuclear Engineering

Background:

• Accurate heavy water (D2O) purity assessment is critical for nuclear energy, chemical, and biomedical applications.
• Distinguishing D2O from H2O is challenging due to their similar physical and chemical properties.
• Luminescence detection is hindered by the subtle differences in optical properties between D2O and H2O.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a novel luminescence-based sensing strategy for the accurate detection of heavy water purity.
• To enhance the luminescence difference between D2O and H2O using a weak coupling approach.
• To demonstrate the practical application of Sm/Tb-doped lanthanide coordination polymers for D2O detection.

Main Methods:

• A weak coupling strategy was employed to amplify the luminescence differences of lanthanide ions (Ln3+).
• Two specific lanthanide coordination polymers, L1-Eu0.14Tb0.86 and L1-Sm0.45Tb0.55, were synthesized and characterized.
• Luminescence sensing experiments were conducted to evaluate the detection capabilities for heavy water.

Main Results:

• The synthesized L1-Sm0.45Tb0.55 and L1-Eu0.14Tb0.86 materials exhibited distinct luminescence responses to D2O and H2O.
• These materials enabled both qualitative visual distinction and quantitative determination of H2O concentrations in D2O.
• Composite films incorporating these polymers (e.g., L1-Sm0.45Tb0.55@PMMA) demonstrated practical application potential.

Conclusions:

• The weak coupling strategy effectively enhances luminescence differences, enabling sensitive D2O detection.
• Sm/Tb-doped lanthanide coordination polymers offer a novel and effective method for heavy water purity analysis.
• This approach provides a valuable tool for applications requiring precise D2O content monitoring.