A hydrophilic polymer based on alkoxyl chain modified fluorene: the novel fluorescence colorimetric sensor for Fe3+, Fe2+, and Cu2+ in aqueous media

Novel hydrophilic polymers consisting of fluorene modified by alkoxyl chain were designed and synthesized via radical polymerization from acrylic acid (PAAF) or acrylamide (PAMF) in the presence of azobisisobutyronitrile. All of these polymers were good water-soluble. The photophysical behaviors of the polymers and the selectivity and sensitivity to detection metal ions were studied by UV-visible and fluorescence spectroscopy technique, and some color changes were visible to the naked eye appeared. The PAMF fluorescent probe showed good selectivity and sensitivity to detection Fe3+ (2.4 × 10−7 mol/L) and PAAF exhibited good selectivity and sensitivity to detection Fe2+ (1.5 × 10−6 mol/L) and Cu2+ (5 × 10−7 mol/L) in water.