Curcuma amada derived nitrogen-doped carbon dots as a dual sensor for tetracycline and mercury ions

The hydrothermal approach was used to make nitrogen-doped carbon dots (NCDs) employing ginger mango and triethylene tetraamine as precursors. The as-synthesized NCDs with a size of 7 nm exhibited good aqueous dispersibility, photostability and green fluorescence under UV light. Various optical, morphological and electrochemical properties of NCDs were examined. It was used as a dual-mode probe for tetracycline and mercuric ion detection. It detected tetracycline selectively and sensitively using an inner filter-based fluorescence quenching mechanism with a detection limit of 32 nM. The NCD modified glassy carbon electrode detected mercuric ions electrochemically with a detection limit of 0.2 nM. Moreover, NCDs were utilized to sense tetracyclines and mercuric ions in tap and river water samples.