Issue 1, 2024

Simple devising of N-doped carbon dots (N-CDs) as a low-cost probe for selective environmental toxin detection and security applications

Abstract

Nitrogen-doped carbon dots (N-CDs) possess outstanding photostability and interesting physicochemical and photochemical properties. Herein, we present cyan-emitting N-CDs that were fabricated through the treatment of salicylic acid with ethylene diamine using a simple microwave-assisted method. It was observed that the reaction produced N-CDs that strongly emitted cyan light with a quantum yield (QY) of 33%. The N-CDs were examined with the assistance of HR-TEM, XPS, XRD, FTIR, PL, and UV measurements. Due to the fluorescence enrichment effect caused by the N atoms in carbon dots, these N-CDs can be used as a fluorescent material for the detection of nitro-explosives and toxic metal cations. The addition of picric acid resulted in splendid quenching of the N-CDs, with a limit of detection (LOD) value of approximately 82.9 nM that was ascribed to the Förster resonance energy transfer between the N-CDs and the nitro-aromatics. Furthermore, the powerful coordination between oxygen-rich moieties and N-CDs for the detection of Fe3+ and Hg2+ cations induced fluorescence quenching through photo-induced electron transfer and the inner-filter effect pathway, leading to the effective recognition of metal ions. The sensor probe exhibited a wide-ranging linear response with an LOD of approximately 30 nM for Fe3+ and 160 nM for Hg2+ ions. Thus, the as-prepared N-CDs can function as a fluorescence sensor, a secure portable information device, and a paper-based probe for detection in biological systems.

Graphical abstract: Simple devising of N-doped carbon dots (N-CDs) as a low-cost probe for selective environmental toxin detection and security applications

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
30 Sep 2023
Accepted
10 Nov 2023
First published
17 Nov 2023

New J. Chem., 2024,48, 216-227

Simple devising of N-doped carbon dots (N-CDs) as a low-cost probe for selective environmental toxin detection and security applications

K. Annamalai, A. Annamalai, R. Ravichandran, A. Jeevarathinam, P. Annamalai, H. Valdes and S. Elumalai, New J. Chem., 2024, 48, 216 DOI: 10.1039/D3NJ04571D

To request permission to reproduce material from this article, please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

If you are an author contributing to an RSC publication, you do not need to request permission provided correct acknowledgement is given.

If you are the author of this article, you do not need to request permission to reproduce figures and diagrams provided correct acknowledgement is given. If you want to reproduce the whole article in a third-party publication (excluding your thesis/dissertation for which permission is not required) please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements