A luminescent 3D Zn(II)-organic framework showing fast, selective and reversible detection of p-nitrophenol in aqueous media

A luminescent Zn(II)-organic framework, [Zn(PIA)]n·2nDMA (1) [H2PIA=5-(pyridin-4-yl)isophthalic acid, DMA=N,N-dimethylacetamide], was solvothermally synthesized and characterized by elemental analysis, IR, TGA, PXRD and single-crystal X-ray crystallography. The structure of 1 features a 3D framework with 1D channels along the a axis, which is constructed from electron-rich π-conjugated PIA2− ligands and paddlewheel [Zn2(CO2)4] secondary building units. The strong luminescent emission at 382 nm of activated 1a could be effectively quenched by trace amounts of p-nitrophenol (p-NP) in water with the limit of detection (LOD) as low as 35.0 ppb, suggesting that 1a is a potential luminescent sensory material for p-NP.