Sensitive, Selective and Reliable Detection of Fe3+ in Lake Water via Carbon Dots-Based Fluorescence Assay

• Published in: Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) Vol. 27; no. 19; p. 6749
• Main Authors: Xiang, Zhuang, Jiang, Yuxiang, Cui, Chen, Luo, Yuanping, Peng, Zhili
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Basel MDPI AG 10.10.2022; MDPI
• Subjects: Alzheimer's disease; Assaying; Carbon; Carbon dots; Citric acid; Deionization; Drinking water; Emissions; Ethylenediamine; Fe3; Fluorescence; fluorescence sensing; Iron; Irradiation; lake water; Lakes; limit of detection; Microwave radiation; Morphology; Nitrogen; Scientific imaging
• ISSN: 1420-3049; 1420-3049
• DOI: 10.3390/molecules27196749

In this study, C-dots were facilely synthesized via microwave irradiation using citric acid and ethylenediamine as carbon precursors. The fluorescence emissions of the C-dots could be selectively quenched by Fe3+, and the degree of quenching was linearly related to the concentrations of Fe3+ presented. This phenomenon was utilized to develop a sensitive fluorescence assay for Fe3+ detection with broad linear range (0–250, 250–1200 μmol/L) and low detection limit (1.68 μmol/L). Most importantly, the assay demonstrated high reliability towards samples in deionized water, tap water and lake water, which should find potential applications for Fe3+ monitoring in complicated environments.