In this work, we present the synthesis of a novel Zn-Salphen complex containing an allyl group, which was used as building block in the further preparation of a new family of functional terpolymers. These polymers were obtained through radical co-polymerization with methyl metacrylate (MMA) and n-butyl acrylate (nBuA) in different ratios. The supramolecular recognition behavior of each polymer was evaluated via potentiometric measurements against selected anions in aqueous media. Interestingly, this proof of concept study shows that these systems were selective against only fluoride (F-) or both, fluoride and acetate (OAc-), by tailoring the relative content of Zn-Salphen monomer, thus making them a promising starting point for modular design of chemical sensors through straightforward synthetic approaches.
Keywords: Zn-salphen building blocks; functional polymers; selective recognition; supramolecular sensing.