Synthesis and evaluation of a molecularly imprinted polymer with high-efficiency recognition for dibutyl phthalate based on Mn-doped ZnS quantum dots

Abstract

In this study, molecularly imprinted polymers with Mn-doped ZnS quantum dots (ZnS:Mn QDs) were prepared using dibutyl phthalate (DBP) as the template molecule, 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES) as the functional monomer and the tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) as the cross-linker. ZnS:Mn QDs offer a readout signal to monitor the amount of DBP bound to the imprinted matrix and to evaluate the efficiency of imprinting. The products MIPs-ZnS:Mn QDs were characterized by transmission electron microscope, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction and fluorescence spectroscopy. In addition, optical stability and the effect of pH on fluorescence intensity were evaluated. The obtained polymers can sensitively and selectively recognize template molecules in real samples via fluorescence intensity. The fluorescence intensity decreases linearly with increasing concentration in the range of 5.0–50 μmol L⁻¹. It reaches a detection limit of 0.27 μmol L⁻¹. The average recovery rate of DBP at three spiking levels is more than 98.1%.