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Photoluminescence properties of N-doped carbon dots prepared in different solvents and applications in pH sensing

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Abstract

Two kinds of nitrogen-doped carbon dots (N-CDs) were synthesized by choosing citric acid, l-serine and monoethanolamine as the precursors, respectively, in organic solvent N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF) and deionized water. The FTIR, UV–Vis, HRTEM and XRD were used to characterize the surface molecular structures of these two N-CDs. It was found that different reaction systems made the as-prepared N-CDs possess varied surface states and thus exhibit distinctive photoluminescence features. For the N-CDs prepared in DMF, its fluorescent property showed pH dependent and color-switchable in visible light and could be reversibly changing over in both alkaline and acidic environments due to the protonation and de-protonation of the carboxyl groups on the surface of the N-CDs. Also, its fluorescence intensity exhibited a linear fashion over the pH range from 1.5 to 7.5, indicating its potential applications in pH quantitative detection under acidic condition.

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Acknowledgements

This study was funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 21374046), Program for Changjiang Scholars and Innovative Research Team in University, Open Project of State Key Laboratory of Supramolecular Structure and Materials (SKLSSM201718) and the Testing Foundation of Nanjing University.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Polymer Science and Engineering, State Key Laboratory of Coordination Chemistry, Collaborative Innovation Center of Chemistry for Life Sciences, Key Laboratory of High Performance Polymer Materials and Technology (Nanjing University), Ministry of Education, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Nanjing University, Nanjing, 210046, People’s Republic of China

    Mei Yang, Baoyan Li, Kailiang Zhong & Yun Lu

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  1. Mei Yang
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Correspondence to Yun Lu.

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Yang, M., Li, B., Zhong, K. et al. Photoluminescence properties of N-doped carbon dots prepared in different solvents and applications in pH sensing. J Mater Sci 53, 2424–2433 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10853-017-1700-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10853-017-1700-7

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