Sensitive fluorescent determination of uranyl ions using a terbium (III) 4-sulfocalix[4]arene probe

Uranium, regarded as an important element in nuclear fission energy schemes, is harmful to public health owing to its high toxicity and radioactivity. Herein, a novel fluorescent probe (SC4A@Tb 3+ ) was developed using a one-step liquid-phase method with 4-sulfocalix[4]arene (SC4A) and rare earth–metal ions (Tb 3+ ) as precursors to realize the accurate monitoring of uranyl ion (UO 2 2+ ) detection. Based on the dynamic quenching mechanism, the SC4A@Tb 3+ fluorescence quenching sensor for UO 2 2+ detection was in the linear range of 0–0.36 µM, with a detection limit of 20 µg·L −1 , and successfully quantified UO 2 2+ in water and human serum samples. These results suggest that SC4A@Tb 3+ is a potential sensing material for UO 2 2+ detection.