Bright-yellow-emissive carbon dots with a large Stokes shift for selective fluorescent detection of 2, 4, 6-trinitrophenol in environmental water samples

A fluorescent nanoprobe based on yellow-emissive carbon dots (Y-CDs) has been constructed for selective and sensitive sensing of 2,4,6-trinitrophenol (TNP). Y-CDs with a large Stokes shift (115 nm) were obtained through a simple one-pot solvothermal method. Significantly, the addition of TNP induced remarkable quenching of fluorescence intensity of Y-CDs via an inner filter effect. There was a good linear relationship between the fluorescence of Y-CDs and TNP concentration (0.2–130 μM), displaying a limit of detection of 56 nM. The nanoprobe can selectively detect TNP without interference from other nitroaromatic explosives, and has been successfully used for determining TNP in environmental water samples, representing a convenient tool for TNP sensing in environmental samples.