A versatile AIE probe with two cross-talk-free emissions for dual detection of SO2 and viscosity and its application in food and biological imaging

[Display omitted] •A new probe NPNB with AIE performance for dual-detection SO2 and viscosity with two cross-talk-free emissions was developed.•NPNB shows good mitochondrial localization effect and has been applied to study the changes in SO2 and viscosity during mitochondrial dysfunction.•NPNB has been used to detect SO2 in food and water. Sulfur dioxide (SO2) and viscosity play important physiological roles in organisms, and real-time detection of their content changes is critical for organisms and human health. Herein, we developed a fluorescence probe NPNB with aggregation-induced emission (AIE) performance and mitochondrial localization effect for simultaneous detection of viscosity and SO2. NPNB can realize the efficient and specific detection of SO2 and viscosity at different emission wavelengths with a cross-talk-free effect, respectively. NPNB showed good sensing performance against SO2, including fast response (