Chemodosimetric Mechanistic Insight through Trapping Intermediate for Selective Detection of Picric Acid in Aqueous Medium by a Dinuclear CdII Complex

A fluorescent dinuclear cadmium(II) based discrete metal complex of composition Cd^II₂L(μ-Cl)Cl₂]( 1 ) is used {HL=2,6-bis2-(methylamino)ethyliminomethyl]-4-Ethylphenol} for the specific recognition of 2,4,6-trinitrophenol (picric acid; PA) via fluorescence quenching phenomenon among various nitroaromatic compounds through a chemodosimetric approach. It has been established that 1 is a chemodosimeter in pure water. We have successfully been able to isolate three compounds: chemodosimeter 1 ; an intermediate complex 2 of composition Cd^II(LH₂)Cl₂](Picrate) and final association complex 3 of composition NH₃(CH₂CH₂)NH₂CH₃](Picrate)₂. Compounds have been characterised by CHN elemental analyses, single crystal X-ray crystallography, PXRD, NMR and FTIR. Selective interaction of 1 with PA was evaluated by fluorescence, UV-Vis and life time measurements. Fluorescence quenching of 1 occurs definitely due to the formation of compound 3 via intermediate 2 involving partial decomplexation, hydrolysis and proton transfer phenomena in solution during the course of sensing. The quenching constant (K_sv), association constant (K_a) and detection limit (LOD) of the complex 1 for picric acid are ～1.55×10⁵ M^?1, ～1.8×10¹⁰ M^?2 and ～0.47 μM (0.108 ppm), respectively. Mechanism of sensing is proposed and the very rare case of isolation and characterization of intermediate in picric acid sensing is discussed.