Ultrasound-Assisted Synthesis of Chalcone: A Highly Sensitive and Selective Fluorescent Chemosensor for the Detection of Fe in Aqueous Media.

The chalcone compound DHPO was synthesized through a chemical reaction between 1-(2-hydroxyphenyl)-ethanone and 3,4-dimethoxy benzaldehyde under ultrasound irradiation. The interaction between the DHPO compound and several metal ions was studied using fluorescence behavior, revealing that the chalcone function as a "turn on and turn off" switch fluorescent sensor, for selectively and sensitively detecting Fe ions. The process of fluorescence quenching and complexation of DHPO with Fe ion was further studied using methods such as Benesi-Hildebrand, Stern-Volmer plot, and job plot.