Tailoring room-temperature phosphorescent ormosil particles for oxygen recognition in organic solvents

Inorganic organic hybrid sol-gel processing has been utilized to fabricate porous chemically selective silicate particles for oxygen recognition in organic solvents. The materials operate on the principle of room-temperature phosphorescence quenching of a triplet probe which has been entrapped in the silica network. A comprehensive investigation was carried out in order to establish optimal particle-processing parameters, and a simple continuous flow system for oxygen sensing in a heptane/chloroform mixture is described. Suggestions for using these materials as oxygen transducers for enzymatic assays in organic solvents are provided.