Abstract:
Fluorescent organic nanoparticles (FONPs) were prepared from an organic tripodal Schiff base ligand (OTL)
in pure water by implementing the re-precipitation method. The FONPs were perfectly spherical in shape
and their size increased with the increase in the amount of OTL. Bigger FONPs were more fluorescent than
the smaller ones and their fluorescent emission showed a strong temperature dependence due to their
amorphous nature. They demonstrated specific binding towards Ag+ ions which resulted in a strong
reducing ability from Ag(I) to Ag(0) to produce organic–inorganic hybrid nanoparticles (i.e. Ag@FONPs).
FONPs and Ag@FONPs were characterized by UV-visible, fluorescence, transmission electron
microscopic (TEM), NMR, IR, and XRD studies. We showed that the FONPs can be repeatedly used for
the extraction of Ag in a systematic manner, while Ag@FONPs can be used for the chromogenic
detection of Cu2+ in biological systems even in the presence of other metal ions. A detailed hemolytic
analysis demonstrated that the smaller Ag@FONPs can also be suitable drug release vehicles in
systematic circulation in comparison to the bigger ones
