Chemiluminescence Detection of Hydrogen Peroxide with a Polymer of an Intrinsic Microporosity Solid State Emitter

The intrinsically microporous polymer PIM-1 provides a highly porous and simultaneously fluorescent and emissive host structure for analytical processes. Trichlorophenoloxalate (TCPO; a reagent for excited state intermediate formation with H₂O₂) has been embedded into PIM-1 (the microporous host) by codeposition. TCPO reacts with the imidazole buffer, and traces of hydrogen peroxide diffuse into the microporous host to give an excited-state intermediate and energy transfer to the fluorescent PIM-1. This causes effective (electro)-chemiluminescence (ECL or CL) emission in the solid state for microporous films deposited on graphene foam (ECL) or for films on filter paper (CL) with diffusion-limited (Cottrellian) signal decay. On graphene foam electrodes/substrates, the formation of hydrogen peroxide from electrochemical oxygen reduction triggers electrochemiluminescence (ECL). On filter paper substrates with PIM-1/TCPO films, direct exposure to hydrogen peroxide triggers chemiluminescence (CL) emission spectra (equivalent to PIM-1 fluorescence spectra). Hydrogen peroxide-mediated detection of glucose is demonstrated and suggested as an effective/potentially reagentless analytical method for a broader range of applications linked to quantitative H₂O₂ analysis.