A ratiometric fluorescent probe for cyanide: Convenient synthesis and the proposed mechanism

A new ratiometric fluorescent cyanide chemosensor, N-2-anthracenyl trifluoroacetamide was designed and synthesized, in which the anthracene moiety acted as a fluorophore and trifluoroacetyl group as the cyanide acceptor. Compared with other reported trifluoroacetamide derivative-based cyanide chemosensors, N-2-anthracenyl trifluoroacetamide exhibits a better cyanide probe with higher sensitivity.