The Synthesis of Bodipy-EDOT for Electrochemical Characterization

The development of electrochemical sensors capable of detecting heavy metals is of benefit to the fields of environmental chemistry and environmental restoration. Development of an electrochemical sensor for heavy metals can be accomplished through preparation of a monomer that can simultaneously form a stable electrode coating and contain functionality to detect heavy metals. This poster describes the preparation of a monomer containing the polymerizable compound 3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene (EDOT) with a heavy metal sensing ligand, boron-dipyrromethene (BODIPY). Synthetic routes to two different BODIPY functionalized EDOT’s are described. One has a short link between the two moieties while the other has a four carbon alkyl chain spacer. The compounds were electrochemically polymerized and the resultant electrode films characterized via cyclic voltammetry.