Dichloromethane, as a widely used highly volatile industrial solvent, has neurotoxicity and hepatotoxicity and is suspected of being a carcinogen to humans. Therefore, it is necessary to develop a detection method that is more convenient for users, responds faster and is more efficient than traditional analytical techniques. In cataluminescence (CTL) technology, as a promising alternative, the performance of CTL sensors critically depends on the design of high-performance sensitive materials. In this study, by rationally designing two typical metal–organic frameworks (MOFs), UIO-66 (zirconium-based) and HKUST-1 (copper-based), UIO-66/HKUST-1 nanocomposites for dichloromethane CTL detection were prepared by using a simple hydrothermal method. The experimental results show that when the composition ratio of UIO-66 is 2%, this composite exhibits the strongest CTL response to dichloromethane. Under optimized conditions, this sensor exhibits high selectivity, excellent stability (RSD = 3.98%), and a rapid response advantage for dichloromethane. The response time and recovery time are 5 and 19 s, respectively. It shows a good linear relationship within the concentration range of 8.4–84 ppm, along with a detection limit as low as 1.71 ppm. Analysis indicates that the enhanced performance stems from the formation of high-concentration oxygen vacancies and significantly strengthened synergistic effects at the UIO-66/HKUST-1 composite. This increases the concentration of surface reactive oxygen species, thereby providing more active sites for catalytic reactions. This work provides a robust and efficient sensing strategy for dichloromethane detection.
Zhou et al. (2026) studied this question.