An inorganic base stripping approach to synthesize N-doped Ti3C2 quantum dots as fluorescence nanoprobe for the simultaneous detection of Co2+ and Ag+ ions

• Published in: Microchemical journal 2022-09, Vol.180, p.107629, Article 107629
• Main Authors: Wang, Xin, Zhang, Xiaodan, Cao, Haiyan, Huang, Yuming
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Cobalt ions; Fluorescence; Nitrogen doping; Silver ions; Ti3C2 quantum dots
• ISSN: 0026-265X; 1095-9149
• DOI: 10.1016/j.microc.2022.107629

[Display omitted] •A simple inorganic base stripping strategy to synthesize N-Ti3C2 QDs.•N-Ti3C2 QDs possessed strong high FL emission with high QY of 14.46%.•N-Ti3C2 QDs had good salt stability and oxidation resistance.•N-Ti3C2 QDs as FL probe for the simultaneous detection of Co2+ and Ag+ ions. N-doped Ti3C2 quantum dots (N-Ti3C2 QDs) as the fluorescent nanoprobe were synthesized through inorganic base (i.e. KOH) stripping and solvothermal approach. The N-Ti3C2 QDs displayed well-monodispersed near-spherical particles with average size of 2.3 nm, exhibited brightly blue emission and good stability, and possessed 14.46% of fluorescent quantum yield. Upon addition of Co2+ or Ag+ ions, the fluorescence (FL) of N-Ti3C2 QDs could be quenched significantly. Mechanism investigation indicated that the inner filter and static extinguishing effects are responsible for the Co2+ or Ag+ ions induced FL quenching of the N-Ti3C2 QDs. Based on above outcomes, we developed a simple N-Ti3C2 QDs based fluorescent assay for the simultaneous determination of Co2+ and Ag+ ions, with a low detection limit of 0.21 and 0.10 μM, respectively. The assay was used to determine the content of Co2+ and Ag+ in real samples. This work will provide another way for the synthesis of fluorescent N-Ti3C2 QDs and exploited their application in simultaneous detection of Co2+ and Ag+.