Grass-derived carbon nanodots as a fluorescent-sensing platform for label-free detection of Cu (II) ions

Herein, carbon nanodots (CNDs) were facilely synthesized using grass as a carbon source by the reflux method. The as-synthesized CNDs were well characterized by UV-Vis spectroscopy, Fluorescence spectroscopy, XRD, FTIR, and SEM. The characterization results revealed that grass-derived CNDs showed strong absorption and fluorescence emission peak and are amorphous with the surface rich in carboxyl and hydroxyl groups. The average particle size is 20 nm with a narrow size distribution. The CNDs showed excellent fluorescent sensitivity and selectivity for the detection of Cu2+ ions with a limit of detection as low as 0.89 mu M with a linear detection range of 1-20 mu M offering a novel sensing platform for Cu2+ ion.