Covalent grafting of fluoride-encapsulating silsesquioxane F-@Ph8T8 onto glassy carbon
Abstract
Covalent immobilization of fluoride-encapsulating octaphenyl silsesquioxane F-@Ph8T8 on glassy carbon (GC) was achieved using a new ambifunctional grafting agent, iodomethyltrimethylsilane TMSCH2I. This grafting method did not require any pre-grafting functionalization of the Ph-trimmed substrate; instead, the GC interface was anodically covered with CH2I groups whose ensuing reduction in the presence of F-@Ph8T8 resulted in the covalent grafting of the phenyl silsesquioxane cage onto the GC surface via the CH2 linker(s). The resulting ionic interface can be used to detect exposure to Li+ - and H+-containing media. The proposed electrochemical process offers a general method for covalent binding of two (poly) aromatic substrates by a methylene bridge.