Chromo-Fluorogenic Detection of Soman and Its Simulant by Thiourea-Based Rhodamine Probe

Abstract

Here, we introduced a novel thiourea-based rhodamine compound as a chromo-fluorogenic indicator of nerve agent Soman and its simulant diethyl chlorophosphate (DCP). The synthesized probe N-(rhodamine B)-lactam-2-(4-cyanophenyl) thiourea (RB-CT), which has a rhodamine core linked by a cyanophenyl thiosemicarbazide group, enabled a rapidly and highly sensitive response to DCP with clear fluorescence and color changes. The detection limit was as low as 2 × 10−6 M. The sensing mechanism showed that opening of the spirolactam ring following the phosphorylation of thiosemicarbazides group formed a seven-membered heterocycle adduct, according to MS analysis and TD-DFT calculations. RB-CT exhibited high detecting selectivity for DCP, among other organophosphorus compounds. Moreover, two test kits were employed and successfully used to detect real nerve agent Soman in liquid and gas phase.

Keywords

• Nerve agents
• Soman
• Rhodamine B
• Thiosemicarbazide
• Chromo-fluorogenic probe
• Detection