A simple and highly selective 'turn-on' type fluorescence chemodosimeter for Hg2+ based on 1-(2-phenyl-2H-[1,2,3]triazole-4-carbonyl)thiosemicarbazide

1-(2-phenyl-2H-[1,2,3]triazole-4-carbonyl)-4-(4-methylphenyl)thiosemicarbazide (M1) has been synthesized and investigated as a fluorescence chemodosimeter for Hg2+ in dimethylsulfoxide. Highly selective 'turn-on' fluorescence alterations of M1 were observed upon the addition of Hg2+. Detection limit of Hg2+ by M1 reaches ~3.7×10−8 mol/L (evaluated by 3σ criteria).The coexistent metal ions rendered no obvious interference toward the optical response of M1 for Hg2+.The mechanism of M1 for the recognition of Hg2+ has been investigated by FT-IR, 1 H NMR and MS analyses.