Ratiometric determination of Cr(VI) based on a dual-emission fluorescent nanoprobe using carbon quantum dots and a smartphone app

Abstract

A simple dual-colour fluorescent nanoprobe has been designed composed of blue and yellow emission carbon quantum dots (CQDs). This system is inexpensive and easy to operate and was successfully employed for on-site measurements based on a smartphone app. The designed nanoprobe exhibited increased selectivity for Cr(VI), leading to a double stable response of the two CQDs. The dual-emission nanoprobe showed blue-violet fluorescence upon UV irradiation, and the fluorescent emission peaks were located at 418 nm and 552 nm. The blue light emission of CQDs was quenched with increasing Cr(VI) concentration due to the inner filter effect, whereas the yellow light emission was enhanced due to the aggregation-induced emission effect. The different responses of the dual emissions to Cr(VI) resulted in a fluorescent colour variation, thus enabling facile macroscopic visualization. With a smartphone, the change in the fluorescence colour could be observed more apparently than that of a single fluorescence nanoprobe, and the response increased linearly so that the nanoprobe could be applied to instantaneous measurements. Furthermore, the dual-emission nanoprobe was successfully employed for analysing food and water samples. Accurate concentrations were obtained by constructing a calibration plot using a fluorescence spectrometer and a smartphone app; the recoveries were 81.6% to 107.7%, and the relative standard deviation was below 3.6%. Therefore, this smartphone-integrated dual-emission detection system is promising as a new portable method for the on-site measurement of Cr(VI) ions. Graphical abstract * Y-CQDs: yellow emission carbon quantum dots. B-CQDs: blue emission carbon quantum dots. B/Y-CQDs: a mixture of B-CQDs and Y-CQDs.