INIDS5-1677
SuFEx-Enabled Synthesis of Fluorescent Conjugated Polymers for Rapid Explosives Detection
Topic
IDS5. Frontiers in Advanced Polymeric Materials (Sponsored by Toray Science Foundation)
When and Where
Sep 29, 2026
11:50 - 12:10
Room 105
Session Chairs
Youn Soo KIM
Presenter(s)
Hanyong Bae (Sungkyunkwan University)
Co-Author(s)
Abstract
The sulfonyl fluoride motif is a key building block for sulfur(VI) fluoride exchange (SuFEx) chemistry. However, efficient access to structurally diverse SuFEx hubs remains challenging. We previously developed a ppm-level phosphazene superbase catalyzed thia-Michael addition under “on-water” conditions, enabling the rapid and highly selective synthesis of β-sulfido sulfonyl fluorides. This methodology provides a broad range of alkyl SuFEx hubs bearing organosulfur functionalities. Based on such platform, the resulting hubs were employed as key intermediates in SuFEx conjugation reactions to prepare sulfonate ester-containing monomers. Subsequent palladium-catalyzed Sonogashira polymerization with pentiptycene-based acetylenes afforded a new series of conjugated polymers, designated the SP series. The incorporation of pentiptycene architectures and sulfide- and sulfonate ester-containing side chains markedly enhances fluorescence quenching by nitroaromatic explosives. In particular, the optimized SP-7 polymer exhibits exceptional sensitivity toward 2,4-dinitrotoluene (DNT) and 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT), achieving >99% fluorescence quenching within a few seconds and substantially outperforming conventional conjugated-polymer sensors. Time-resolved photoluminescence and transient absorption spectroscopic studies reveal efficient electron-transfer-mediated sensing involving both static and dynamic quenching pathways. Furthermore, a simple TLC-spotting assay enables the rapid (<30 s) and selective detection of nitroaromatic explosives under UV irradiation. These results establish SuFEx-derived SP polymers as a versatile molecular platform for high-performance fluorescence sensing and practical explosives detection.
