One-Step Synthesis of the Nitrogen and Sulfur Codoped Carbon Dots for Detection of Lead and Copper Ions in Aqueous Solution

Herein, by using the green and cheap L-cysteine as the precursor, nitrogen and sulfur codoped carbon dots (NS-CDs) were synthesized via a facile one-step hydrothermal method. The obtained NS-CDs showed the relatively narrow size distributions (2.1~3.9 nm) with the lattice spacing of 0.29 nm, as well as the excitation-dependent photoluminescence (PL) emission activity with the quantum yield (QY) of 18%. More interestingly, the PL intensity of NS-CDs was quenched by the addition of copper or lead ions (Cu2+ or Pb2+), which was shown in the tradition detection method by PL spectra. The NS-CDs exhibited ultrasensitive colorimetric sensing capability for both Cu2+ and Pb2+ by the color variance using naked eyes without any further treating. Two different coupling ways for detecting Pb2+ and Cu2+ were induced by the analysis of the Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). And the as-prepared NS-CDs showed their potential application in the heavy metal ions detection for the wastewater determination.