A new Eu-MOF for ratiometrically fluorescent detection toward quinolone antibiotics and selective detection toward tetracycline antibiotics

Development of new self-calibrating fluorescent sensing methods has been a popular research field with the aim of protecting the human health and environment sustainability. In this work, a novel Eu-based metal organic framework (MOF) Eu(2,6-NDC)(COO) (BUC-88) was developed by employing 2,6-NDC (2,6-naphthalenedicarboxylic acid) as bridging ligands. BUC-88 performed different sensing process toward quinolone antibiotics and tetracyclines antibiotics in terms of fluorescence intensity and color. BUC-88 exhibited excellent selectivity and sensitivity detection property toward enrofloxacin (ENR), norfloxacin (NOR) and ciprofloxacin (CIP) over other Pharmaceutical and Personal Care Products (PPCPs), accomplishing the detection limit of 0.12 μmol/L, 0.52 μmol/L, 0.75 μmol/L, respectively. Notably, BUC-88 acted as an excellent fluorescence sensor for tetracyclines antibiotics with fast response time (less than 1 s), high selectivity and sensitivity (LODs = 0.08 μmol/L). The fluorescent detection method was successfully used for visual and ultrasensitive detection of ENR, NOR, CIP and tetracycline hydrochloride (TC) in lake water with satisfied recovery from 99.75% to 102.30%. Finally, the photoinduced electron transfer and the competitive absorption of ultraviolet light are the main mechanisms for sensitive detection toward quinolone antibiotics and tetracyclines antibiotics.