Polymeric Chemosensors for the Detection of Copper (Cu²⁺) and Mercury (Hg²⁺) Ions in Aqueous Medium

Choudhury, Neha (2020) Polymeric Chemosensors for the Detection of Copper (Cu²⁺) and Mercury (Hg²⁺) Ions in Aqueous Medium. PhD thesis, Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Kolkata.

Text (PhD thesis of Neha Choudhury (15RS056)) 15RS056.pdf - Submitted Version Restricted to Repository staff only Download (10MB)

Abstract

Nowadays, the existence of heavy and transition metal (HTM) ions in water are destructively influenced by human activities, like industrial development and the subsequent impact into water streams. Due to the non-biodegradable nature of HTM ions, they can mount up by comestible animals and plants, eventually ended up into the human food cycle. Among several HTM ions, copper (Cu²⁺) ions attract considerable attention since it acts as a cofactor for several vital biological processes like blood formation and operation of numerous enzymes, but fluctuations in its cellular homeostasis are associated with severe neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimer’s and Wilson's disease. In a similar way, mercury both in ionic and non-ionic forms are highly poisonous for living organisms and the ecosystem. Due to the high affinity of Hg²⁺ ions towards thiol groups, it interacts with proteins consisting of thiol moiety, causing cell malfunction and subsequently leading to several health issues associated with brain, kidney, and central nervous system. Upon accumulation in the human body, it induces prenatal brain damage, cognitive and motion disorders, and Minamata disease. Therefore, it is of utmost interest to develop a highly sensitive assay that can effectively detect these metal ions from aqueous medium. In this regard, a tremendous effort has been devoted to the advancement of selective, sensitive, and low-cost detection strategies. Consequently, in the past few decades, numerous emissive molecular chemosensors have been developed for the selective detection of Cu²⁺ / Hg²⁺ ions in water and living systems. Despite reasonable significance, such sensors still suffer from some limitations such as higher solubility in organic media, lack of sensitivity in a competitive environment, time-consuming response, applicability in narrow pH range, and less biocompatibility. In this context, water-soluble polymers emerged as an important class of macromolecules that amalgamate the distinctive photophysical properties of conventional polymers with aqueous solubility, biocompatibility, and high sensitivity, upon modification of hydrophilic and hydrophobic pendants in the side chains. This thesis focuses on the synthetic developments of receptor-based side-chain hydrophilic polymers via reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization method that are capable of sensing and/or removal of Cu²⁺ and Hg²⁺ ions from aqueous media.

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