Phthalocyanine-based fluorescent chemosensor for the sensing of Zn (II) in dimethyl sulfoxide-acetonitrile

A tetra-substituted phthalocyanine based on 4-2-(4-nitrophenoxy)ethoxy]phthalonitrile carrying nitrophenyl group for the sensing of Zn²⁺ has been prepared and characterized by elemental analysis, FT-IR, ¹H and ¹³C NMR, and MS spectral data. The sensing of Zn²⁺ is based on the fluorescence quenching of Pc. Both absorbance and fluorescence spectra of ZnPc exhibit distinct changes in visible region in response to treatment with Zn²⁺ ion in dimethyl sulfoxide. The fluorescence spectrum of the ligand showed quenching in the intensity of the signal at 688?nm for Zn²⁺. The complex composition of ZnPc was found 1:1 by means of spectrophotometric and spectrofluorimetric titration data. The spectrofluorimetric method showed good sensitivity for Zn²⁺ with linear range and detection limit of 4.0?×?10^?6–4.4?×?10^?5 and 2.4×10^?7?M, respectively.