Selective fluorescent sensing and photocatalytic properties of a new 2D Co coordination polymer based on 1,1′-di(p-carbonylbenzyl)-2,2′-biimidazoline

A stable 2D Co coordination polymer [Co(DCB)(BIMBP)]n (1) was advisably designed and synthesized (H2DCB and BIMBP are 1,1′-di(p-carbonylbenzyl)-2,2′-biimidazoline and 4,4′-bis(imidazol-1-ylmethyl)biphenyl). Profiting by the excellent luminescence performance and high stability in water, complex 1 is a latent multi-functional fluorescent probe toward Fe3+, Cr2O72− and CrO42−, and nitrofurantoin (NFT) in aqueous medium. The quenching constant (KSV) values of complex 1 are 1.56 × 104 M−1 for Fe3+, 1.45 × 104 M−1 for Cr2O72−, 1.19 × 104 M−1 for CrO42−, and 4.80 × 103 M−1 for NFT, respectively. Furthermore, complex 1 is an effective and stable photocatalyst and displays outstanding photocatalytic degradation of Rhodamine B (RhB) and methylene blue (MB) in water solution. The maximum degradation rate can reach 91.3 % for MB and 90.6 % for RhB in 80 min.