Selenium‐Doped Carbon Quantum Dots for Free‐Radical Scavenging

Heteroatom doping is an effective way to adjust the fluorescent properties of carbon quantum dots. However, selenium‐doped carbon dots have rarely been reported, even though selenium has unique chemical properties such as redox‐responsive properties owing to its special electronegativity. Herein, a facile and high‐output strategy to fabricate selenium‐doped carbon quantum dots (Se‐CQDs) with green fluorescence (quantum yield 7.6 %) is developed through the hydrothermal treatment of selenocystine under mild conditions. Selenium heteroatoms endow the Se‐CQDs with redox‐dependent reversible fluorescence. Furthermore, free radicals such as ^.OH can be effectively scavenged by the Se‐CQDs. Once Se‐CQDs are internalized into cells, harmful high levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in the cells are decreased. This property makes the Se‐CQDs capable of protecting biosystems from oxidative stress.     

Highly Luminescent N‐Doped Carbon Quantum Dots as an Effective Multifunctional Fluorescence Sensing Platform

The doping of carbon quantum dots with nitrogen provides a promising direction to improve fluorescence performance and broaden their applications in sensing systems. Herein we report a one‐pot solvothermal synthesis of N‐doped carbon quantum dots (NCQDs) and the synthesis of a series of NCQDs with different nitrogen contents. The as‐prepared NCQDs were compared with carbon quantum dots (CQDs); the introduction of nitrogen atoms largely increased the quantum yield of NCQDs and highest emission efficiency is up to 36.3 %. The fluorescence enhancement may originate from more polyaromatic structures induced by incorporated nitrogen atoms and protonation of nitrogen atoms on dots. It was found that NCQDs can act as a multifunctional fluorescence sensing platform because they can be used to detect pH values, Ag^I, and Fe^III in aqueous solution. The fluorescence intensity of NCQDs is inversely proportional to pH values across a broad range from 5.0 to 13.5, which indicates that NCQDs can be devised as an effective pH indicator. Selective detection of Ag^I and Fe^III was achieved based on their distinctive fluorescence influence because Ag^I can significantly enhance the fluorescence whereas Fe^III can greatly quench the fluorescence. The quantitative determination of Ag^I can be accomplished with NCQDs by using the linear relationship between fluorescence intensity of NCQDs and concentration of Ag^I. The sensitive detection of H₂O₂ was developed by taking advantage of the distinct quenching ability of Fe^III and Fe^II toward the fluorescence of NCQDs. Cellular toxicity test showed NCQDs still retain low toxicity to cells despite the introduction of a great deal of nitrogen atoms. Moreover, bioimaging experiments demonstrated that NCQDs have stronger resistance to photobleaching than CQDs and more excellent fluorescence labeling performance.     

Carbon Quantum Dots from Pomelo Peel as Fluorescence Probes for “Turn-Off–On” High-Sensitivity Detection of Fe3+ and L-Cysteine

This study designed a “turn-off–on” fluorescence analysis method based on carbon quantum dots (CQDs) to detect metal ions and amino acids in real sample systems. CQDs were derived from green pomelo peel via a one-step hydrothermal process. The co-doped CQDs with N and S atoms imparted excellent optical properties (quantum yield = 17.31%). The prepared CQDs could be used as fluorescent “turn-off” probes to detect Fe³⁺ with a limit of detection of 0.086 µM, a linear detection range of 0.1–160 µM, and recovery of 83.47–106.53% in water samples. The quenched CQD fluorescence could be turned on after adding L-cysteine (L-Cys), which allowed detection of L-Cys with a detection limit of 0.34 µM and linear range of 0.4–85 µM. Recovery of L-Cys in amino acid beverage was 87.08–122.74%. Visual paper-based testing strips and cellulose/CQDs composite hydrogels could be also used to detect Fe³⁺ and L-Cys.     

Integration of Metal-Organic Frameworks with Bi-Nanoprobes as Dual-Emissive Ratiometric Sensors for Fast and Highly Sensitive Determination of Food Hazards

Functional nanoprobes which detect specific food hazards quickly and simply are still in high demand in the field of food-safety inspection research. In the present work, a dual-emission metal-organic framework-based ratiometric fluorescence probe was integrated to detect Cu²⁺ and Pb²⁺ with rapidness and ease. Specifically, quantum dots (QDs) and carbon quantum dots (CQDs) were successfully embedded into zeolitic imidazolate framework-67 (ZIF-67) to function as a novel ratiometric fluorescent sensing composite. The ratiometric fluorescence signal of CQDs/QDs@ZIF-67 was significantly aligned with the concentration of metal ions to give an extremely low detection limit of 0.3324 nM. The highly sensitive and selective CQDs/QDs@ZIF-67 composite showed potential for the rapid and cost-effective detection of two metal ions.     

Facile Microwave‐Assisted Solid‐Phase Synthesis of Highly Fluorescent Nitrogen–Sulfur‐Codoped Carbon Quantum Dots for Cellular Imaging Applications

Carbon quantum dots (CQDs) have recently attracted significant attention for both their fundamental science and technological applications as a new class of fluorescent zero‐dimensional nanomaterials with a size below 10 nm. However, the reported methods of synthesis were generally less suitable for the large‐scale production of the CQDs with high‐fluorescent quantum yield (QY). In the paper, a novel one‐pot microwave‐assisted drying synthesis approach was presented to prepare CQDs with high QY of 61.3 % for the first time. The production yield of CQDs was 35±3 % in weight. The as‐prepared CQDs were characterized by various techniques such as TEM, AFM, XRD, XPS, FTIR spectroscopy, UV/Vis absorption spectroscopy, and fluorescence spectroscopy. The results showed that the high QY of CQDs was largely attributed to the dual doping of nitrogen and sulphur into CQDs. Such CQDs were then used as live‐cell imaging reagents due to their high QY, good water dispersibility, fine biocompatibility, high photostability, and low cytotoxicity.     

Room‐Temperature Solution‐Processed PbS Quantum Dot Solar Cells

Colloidal quantum dots (CQDs) are attractive absorber materials for high‐efficiency photovoltaics because of their facile solution processing, bandgap tunability due to quantum confinement effect, and multi‐exciton generation. To date, all published performance records for PbS CQDs solar cells have been based on the conventional hot‐injection synthesis method. This method usually requires relatively strict conditions such as high temperature and the utility of expensive source material (pyrophoric bis(trimethylsilyl) sulfide (TMS‐S)), limiting the potential for large‐scale and low‐cost synthesis of PbS CQDs. Here we report a facile room‐temperature synthetic method to produce high‐quality PbS CQDs through inexpensive ionic source materials including Pb(NO₃)₂ and Na₂S in the presence of triethanolamine (TEA) as the stabilizing ligand. The PbS CQDs were successfully prepared with an average particle size of about 5 nm. Solar cells based on the as‐synthesized PbS CQDs show a preliminary power conversion efficiency of 1.82%. This room‐temperature and low‐cost synthesis of PbS CQDs will further benefit the development of solution‐processed CQD solar cells.     

Highly Photoluminescent Amino‐Functionalized Graphene Quantum Dots Used for Sensing Copper Ions

Herein, we report a new kind of highly fluorescent probe for Cu²⁺ sensing generated by hydrothermal treatment of graphene quantum dots (GQDs). After hydrothermal treatment in ammonia, the greenish‐yellow fluorescent GQDs (gGQDs) with a low quantum yield (QY, 2.5 %) are converted to amino‐functionalized GQDs (afGQDs) with a high QY (16.4 %). Due to the fact that Cu²⁺ ions have a higher binding affinity and faster chelating kinetics with N and O on the surface of afGQDs than other transition‐metal ions, the selectivity of afGQDs for Cu²⁺ is much higher than that of gGQDs. Furthermore, afGQDs are biocompatible and eco‐friendly, and the afGQDs with a positive charge can be easily taken up by cells, which makes it possible to sense Cu²⁺ in living cells. The strategy presented here is simple in design, economical, and offers a “mix‐and‐detect” protocol without dye‐modified oligonucleotides or complex chemical modification.     

Selective Detection of Mercury（Ⅱ） and Copper（Ⅱ） Based on the Opposite Size-dependent Fluorescence Quenching of CdTe Quantum Dots

Three different size CdTe quantum dots （QDs） capped by 3-mercaptopropionic acid （MPA） have been prepared in aqueous solutions, and their interactions with Cu^2＋ and Hg^2＋ have been investigated. The opposite size-dependent fluorescence quenching of CdTe QDs by Hg^2＋ and Cu^2＋ was observed： Hg^2＋ quenched smaller particles more efficiently than larger ones while larger particles were more markedly quenched by Cu^2＋. Based on the different size responses, Hg^2＋ and Cu^2＋ were respectively detected with high sensitivity and selectivity, for the first time, using the QDs with different sizes but the same components and capping ligands.     

Visible‐Light Photocatalytic Hydrogen Production Activity of ZnIn2S4 Microspheres Using Carbon Quantum Dots and Platinum as Dual Co‐catalysts

ZnIn₂S₄ microspheres (ZIS MSs) were for the first time decorated with carbon quantum dots (CQDs) and platinum nanoparticles (NPs) as dual co‐catalysts of for photocatalytic H₂ production. The ZIS MSs co‐loaded with CQDs and Pt exhibited a high photocatalytic H₂ production rate of 1032.2 μmol h^?1 g^?1 with an apparent quantum efficiency of 2.2 % (420 nm) in triethanolamine aqueous solution under visible‐light irradiation, which was much higher than the respective photocatalytic rates of pure ZIS, Pt loaded ZIS, and CQDs‐decorated ZIS. Such a great enhancement was attributed to the integrative effect of good crystallization, enhanced light absorption, high electrical conductivity of CQDs, and the vectorial electron transfer from ZIS to CQDs and Pt NPs (ZIS→CQDs→Pt).     

Synthesis of Tri‐functional Core‐shell CuO@carbon Quantum Dots@carbon Hollow Nanospheres Heterostructure for Non‐enzymatic H2O2 Sensing and Overall Water Splitting Applications

A core‐shell structure with CuO core and carbon quantum dots (CQDs) and carbon hollow nanospheres (CHNS) shell was prepared through facile in‐situ hydrothermal process. The composite was used for non‐enzymatic hydrogen peroxide sensing and electrochemical overall water splitting. The core‐shell structure was established from the transmission electron microscopy image analysis. Raman and UV‐Vis spectroscopy analysis confirmed the interaction between CuO and CQDs. The electrochemical studies showed the limit of detection and sensitivity of the prepared composite as 2.4 nM and 56.72 μA μM^?1 cm^?2, respectively. The core‐shell structure facilitated better charge transportation which in turn exhibited elevated electro‐catalysis towards hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), oxygen evolution reaction (OER) and overall water splitting. The overpotential of 159 mV was required to achieve 10 mA cm^?2 current density for HER and an overpotential of 322 mV was required to achieve 10 mA cm^?2 current density for OER in 1.0 M KOH. A two‐electrode system was constructed for overall water splitting reaction, which showed 10 and 50 mA cm^?2 current density at 1.83 and 1.96 V, respectively. The prepared CuO@CQDs@CHNS catalyst demonstrated excellent robustness in HER and OER catalyzing condition along with overall water splitting reaction. Therefore, the CuO@CQDs@CHNS could be considered as promising electro‐catalyst for H₂O₂ sensing, HER, OER and overall water splitting.     

An Efficient Templating Approach for the Synthesis of Redispersible Size‐Controllable Carbon Quantum Dots from Graphitic Polymeric Micelles

Access to high‐quality, easily dispersible carbon quantum dots (CQDs) is essential in order to fully exploit their desirable properties. Copolymers based on N‐acryloyl‐D ‐glucosamine and acrylic acid prepared by reversible addition–fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization are self‐assembled into micelle‐like nanoreactors. After a facile graphitization process (170 °C, atmospheric pressure), each micellar template is transformed into a CQD through a 1:1 copy process. These high‐quality CQDs (quantum yield=22 %) with tunable sizes (2–5 nm) are decorated by carboxylic acid moieties and can be spontaneously redispersed in water and polar organic solvents. This preparation method renders the mass production of multifunctional CQDs possible. To demonstrate the versatility of this approach, CQDs hybridized TiO₂ nanoparticles with enhanced photocatalytic activity under visible‐light have been prepared.     

中温煤沥青基碳量子点的制备与结构解析

以中温煤沥青为碳源，采用HNO₃预处理结合球磨过程及双氧水氧化刻蚀的方法制备沥青基荧光碳量子点，以CQDs的收率和荧光量子产率为目标，获得最优制备条件：反应时间6 h、H₂O₂加入量100 mL （c-CQDs），此时，CQDs收率和荧光量子产率分别为6.3%和11.2%，且尺寸均匀、粒径分布在4-14 nm。延长反应时间至8 h （a-CQDs），碳量子点团聚；H₂O₂用量增加至120 mL （b-CQDs）则导致碳量子点氧化过度，颗粒小且杂乱无章。对不同条件下所制备的CQDs进行XPS、红外光谱、热重、¹³C NMR、Raman和晶相分析，探究反应条件对CQDs结构的影响规律。结果表明，就碳含量而言，a-CQDs > b-CQDs > c-CQDs，氧元素含量则为b-CQDs > c-CQDs > a-CQDs。各CQDs结构中C主要以芳碳形式存在，c-CQDs的C=O、O-C=O含量最高，而b-CQDs的C-O含量最高，¹³C NMR分析发现CQDs中表征平均芳环尺寸大小的X_b约为0.5，相应地，其平均芳环数约为3。     

Carbon quantum dots from natural resource: A review

Carbon quantum dots (CQDs) are a new class of fluorescence small carbon nanoparticles with a particle size of less than 10 nm and have vast applications in the field of bioimaging, biosensing and disease-detection. These are promising materials for nano-biotechnology since it has smaller particle size, excellent biocompatibility and excitation wavelength dependent photoluminescence (PL) behavior, photo induced electron transfer, chemical inertness and low toxicity. These materials have excellent fluorescent properties such as broad excitation spectra, narrow and tunable emission spectra, and high photostability against photo bleaching and blinking than other fluorescent semiconductor quantum dots. This review article demonstrate the recent progress in the synthesis, functionalization and technical applications of carbon quantum dots using electrochemical oxidation, combustion/thermal, chemical change, microwave heating, arc-discharge, and laser ablation methods from various natural resources. Natural carbon sources are used for the preparation of CQDs due to its low cost, environmental friendly and widely available.     

基于氮掺杂碳量子点荧光猝灭效应检测Fe3+

碳量子点光致发光性质取决于尺寸大小和表面官能团的性质.本研究以还原冶炼过程产生的生物质焦油为前驱体,采用小分子乙二胺进行氮掺杂,通过一步水热法合成荧光产率高、分散性能好的氮掺杂碳量子点,基于Fe3+对氮掺杂碳量子点选择性荧光猝灭效应,实现了对Fe3+快速准确检测.合成的氮掺杂碳量子点为规则的球形,尺寸均一,平均粒径为2.64 nm,晶面间距为0.25 nm,具备石墨碳晶格(100)晶格结构,其荧光量子产率为26.1%;Fe3+与N-CQDs表面官能团配位络合致使N-CQDs荧光猝灭,Fe3+浓度在0.23~600μmol/L范围内,与氮掺杂碳量子点荧光猝灭程度呈良好的线性关系,Fe3+的检出限为230 nmol/L.     

A Hydrothermal Method to Generate Carbon Quantum Dots from Waste Bones and Their Detection of Laundry Powder

Surfactants are one of the major pollutants in laundry powder, which have an impact on the environment and human health. Carbon quantum dots (CQDs) are spherical zero-dimensional fluorescent nanoparticles with great potential for fluorescent probing, electrochemical biosensing and ion sensing. Herein, a bottom-up approach was developed for the synthesis of CQDs from biomass to detect laundry detergent and laundry powder. Waste chicken bones were used as carbon precursors after being dried, crushed and reacted with pure water at 180 °C for 4 h to generate CQDs, which exhibited a monodisperse quasi-spherical structure with an average particle size of 3.2 ± 0.2 nm. Functional groups, including -OH, C=O, C=C and C-O, were identified on the surface of the prepared CQDs. The optimal fluorescence excitation wavelength of the yellow-brown CQDs was 380 nm, with a corresponding emission peak at 465 nm. CQDs did not significantly increase cell death in multiple cell lines at concentrations of 200 µg·mL⁻¹. Fluorescence enhancement of CQDs was observed after addition of sodium dodecyl benzene sulphonate, a major anionic surfactant in laundry powder. A linear relationship between fluorescence enhancement CQDs and the concentration of laundry powder was established. Thus, a hydrothermal method was developed to generate CQDs from waste biomass that may be used as a fluorescent probe to detect laundry powder.     

Preparation of Nitrogen and Sulfur Co-Doped Fluorescent Carbon Dots from Cellulose Nanocrystals as a Sensor for the Detection of Rutin

The poor water solubility, large particle size, and low accessibility of cellulose, the most abundant bioresource, have restricted its generalization to carbon dots (CDs). Herein, nitrogen and sulfur co-doped fluorescent carbon dots (N, S-CDs) were hydrothermally synthesized using cellulose nanocrystals (CNC) as a carbon precursor, exhibiting a small particle size and excellent aqueous dispersion. Thiourea was selected as a nitrogen and sulfur dopant to introduce abundant fluorescent functional groups into N, S-CDs. The resulting N, S-CDs exhibited nanoscale size (6.2 nm), abundant functional groups, bright blue fluorescence, high quantum yield (QY = 27.4%), and high overall yield (16.2%). The excellent optical properties of N, S-CDs endowed it to potentially display a highly sensitive fluorescence “turn off” response to rutin. The fluorescence response for rutin allowed a wide linear range of 0–40 mg·L⁻¹, with a limit of detection (LOD) of 0.02 μM, which revealed the potential of N, S-CDs as a rapid and simple sensing platform for rutin detection. In addition, the sustainable and large-scale production of the N, S-CDs in this study paves the way for the successful high-value utilization of cellulose.     

Copper‐Doped CdSe/ZnS Quantum Dots: Controllable Photoactivated Copper(I) Cation Storage and Release Vectors for Catalysis

The first photoactivated doped quantum dot vector for metal‐ion release has been developed. A facile method for doping copper(I) cations within ZnS quantum dot shells was achieved through the use of metal‐dithiocarbamates, with Cu⁺ ions elucidated by X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Photoexcitation of the quantum dots has been shown to release Cu⁺ ions, which was employed as an effective catalyst for the Huisgen [3+2] cycloaddition reaction. The relationship between the extent of doping, catalytic activity, and the fluorescence quenching was also explored.     

野酸枣氮掺杂荧光碳量子点高灵敏检测Hg2+

以天然产物野酸枣和色氨酸为原料,通过水热法一步合成量子产率为16.9%的氮掺杂荧光碳量子点。该碳量子点具有良好的水溶性和耐光性,在高盐环境中也呈现出了较高的稳定性。应用荧光光谱、透射电子显微镜(TEM)、傅里叶变换红外光谱(FTIR)和X射线光电子能谱(XPS)对碳量子点进行了表征。此外,Hg^2+能够有效地猝灭碳量子点的荧光,猝灭机理为电子转移的动态猝灭。基于此,可将碳量子点作为荧光探针检测Hg^2+。方法对Hg^2+的检测范围为1~50 nmol/L,检出限为0.26 nmol/L,能够应用于实际水样中Hg2+含量的测定。     

Green process of biomass waste derived fluorescent carbon quantum dots for biological imaging in vitro and in vivo

In the context of the circular economy, the huge amounts of biomass waste should be converted into value-added materials and energy to diminish pollution, atmospheric CO₂ levels and costly waste disposal. Biological imaging usually uses expensive and toxic chemicals e.g., organic dyes, semiconductor quantum dots, calling for safer, greener, cheaper fluorescent probes for biological imaging in vitro and in vivo. In these regards, carbon quantum dots (CQDs)-based fluorescent probes using biomass waste as a precursor may have much higher potential. Here we transformed the biomass waste of peach leaves into value-added fluorescent CQDs through a low-cost and green one-step hydrothermal process. The obtained CQDs show excitation-dependent photoluminescence properties with a fluorescence lifetime of 5.96 ns and a quantum yield of 7.71% without any passivation. In addition, the CQDs have a fine size of 1.9 nm with good hydrophilicity and high fluorescent stability over pH 4.0–11.0 range. Fluorescence imaging of in vitro cell cultures and in vivo with zebrafish show that CQDs possess ultra-low toxicity and remarkable performance for biological imaging. Even when CQDs present at a concentration as high as 500 µg/mL, the organism can still maintain more than 90% activity both in vitro and in vivo, and present bright fluorescence. The cheaper, greener, ultra-low toxicity CQDs developed in this work is a potential candidate for biological imaging in vitro and in vivo.     

Kilogram-scale synthesis of carbon quantum dots for hydrogen evolution,sensing and bioimaging

The development of large-scale synthetic methods for high quality carbon quantum dots (CQDs) is fundamental to their applications. However, the macroscopic preparation and scale up synthetic of CQDs is still in its infancy. Here, we report a facile, green, kilogram-scale synthesis of high quality fluorescent CQDs derived from poplar leaves via a one-step hydrothermal method. Notably, the throughput of CQDs can reach a level up to as high as 1.4975 kg in one pot. The structure and properties of the as-prepared CQDs were assessed through TEM, XRD, XPS and various spectroscopic methods. The obtained high quality CQDs with a photoluminescent quantum yield of 10.64% showed remarkable stability in aqueous media, rich functional groups, high photostability, consistent photoluminescence within biological pH range and low cytotoxicity. On account of these good properties, we demonstrated the multifunctional application to electrocatalytic water splitting, Fe³⁺ sensing and bioimaging. It showed remarkable electrocatalytic activity, Fe³⁺ sensitivity and good biocompatibility. This study provides a green, facile, inexpensive and large-scale method for producing high quality CQDs, which provides application value for large-scale production of CQDs.