biostudies-literatureYe XNational Natural Science Foundation of ChinaE707https://www.ebi.ac.uk/biostudies/studies/S-EPMC6567080biostudies-literatureUnknown9(5)Aggregation-induced emission (AIE) active cellulose nanocrystals (TPE-CNCs) were synthesized by attaching tetraphenylethylene (TPE) to cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs). The structure and morphology of TPE-CNCs were characterized by FT-IR, XRD, ζ-potential measurements, elemental analysis, TEM, atomic force microscopy (AFM), and dynamic laser light scattering (DLS). Fluorescent properties of TPE-CNCs were also further studied. Unlike aggregation-caused quenching (ACQ), TPE-CNCs emitted weak fluorescence in the dilute suspensions, while emitting efficiently in the aggregated states. The AIE mechanism of TPE-CNCs was attributed to the restriction of an intramolecular rotation (RIR) process in the aggregated states. TPE-CNCs displayed good dispersity in water and stable fluorescence, which was reported through the specific detection of nitrophenolic explosives in aqueous solutions by a fluorescence quenching assay. The fluorescence emissions of TPE-CNCs showed quantitative and sensitive responses to picric acid (PA), 2,4-dinitro-phenol (DNP), and 4-nitrophenol (NP), and the detection limits were 220, 250, and 520 nM, respectively. Fluorescence quenching occurred through a static mechanism via the formation of a nonfluorescent complex between TPE-CNCs and nitrophenolic analytes. A fluorescence lifetime measurement revealed that the quenching was a static process. The results demonstrated that TPE-CNCs were excellent sensors for the detection of nitrophenolic explosives in aqueous systems, which has great potential applications in chemosensing and bioimaging.Nanomaterials (Basel, Switzerland)Aggregation-Induced Emission (AIE)-Labeled Cellulose Nanocrystals for the Detection of Nitrophenolic Explosives in Aqueous Solutions.PMC656708051473128Yu LWang HYe XZhou JfalseAggregation-Induced Emission (AIE)-Labeled Cellulose Nanocrystals for the Detection of Nitrophenolic Explosives in Aqueous Solutions.Aggregation-induced emission (AIE) active cellulose nanocrystals (TPE-CNCs) were synthesized by attaching tetraphenylethylene (TPE) to cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs). The structure and morphology of TPE-CNCs were characterized by FT-IR, XRD, ζ-potential measurements, elemental analysis, TEM, atomic force microscopy (AFM), and dynamic laser light scattering (DLS). Fluorescent properties of TPE-CNCs were also further studied. Unlike aggregation-caused quenching (ACQ), TPE-CNCs emitted weak fluorescence in the dilute suspensions, while emitting efficiently in the aggregated states. The AIE mechanism of TPE-CNCs was attributed to the restriction of an intramolecular rotation (RIR) process in the aggregated states. TPE-CNCs displayed good dispersity in water and stable fluorescence, which was reported through the specific detection of nitrophenolic explosives in aqueous solutions by a fluorescence quenching assay. The fluorescence emissions of TPE-CNCs showed quantitative and sensitive responses to picric acid (PA), 2,4-dinitro-phenol (DNP), and 4-nitrophenol (NP), and the detection limits were 220, 250, and 520 nM, respectively. Fluorescence quenching occurred through a static mechanism via the formation of a nonfluorescent complex between TPE-CNCs and nitrophenolic analytes. A fluorescence lifetime measurement revealed that the quenching was a static process. The results demonstrated that TPE-CNCs were excellent sensors for the detection of nitrophenolic explosives in aqueous systems, which has great potential applications in chemosensing and bioimaging.2019-01-01T00:00:00Z2019 May2025-04-25T18:11:41.955Z2019-07-24T07:18:03ZS-EPMC65670803106770710.3390/nano9050707