Eu3+-Functionalized MOFs for the simple and rapid 5-Hydroxymethylfurfural determination in food

[Display omitted] •A Eu3+-functionalized Hf-MOF luminescent probe for 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (5-HMF)•The probe exhibiting excellent selectivity and sensitivity toward 5-HMF.•The probe applying to detect 5-HMF in practical samples of milk, honey and juice.•A potential candidate for sensing and determining 5-HMF in food sample. 5-Hydroxymethylfurfural (5-HMF) is an important product of the Maillard reaction and can be used as a quality indicator of food. 5-HMF has been found in studies to be harmful to human health. In this study, a highly selective and anti-interference fluorescent sensor Eu@1 is constructed based on Eu3+-functionalized Hf-based MOF for monitoring 5-HMF in a variety of food products. Eu@1 shows high selectivity, low LOD (8.46 μM), fast response time, and repeatability for 5-HMF. More importantly, after adding 5-HMF to milk, honey and apple juice samples, the probe Eu@1 is proved to be successfully in sensing 5-HMF in the above food samples. Therefore, this study provides a dependable and efficient alternative for the detection of 5-HMF in food samples.