Novel Dual-Emission Carbonized Polymer Dot-Based Ratiometric Fluorescence Probe for the Sensitive Detection of Tertiary Butylhydroquinone

Abstract

Tertiary butylhydroquinone (TBHQ), one of the most common antioxidants in many foods, has attracted widespread attention due to its potential risk to human health. In this work, an “on–off–on” ratiometric fluorescent probe was prepared using dual-emission carbonized polymer dots (d-CPDs), which can be used to detect TBHQ in edible oils. The ratiometric fluorescent sensing system consisted of blue fluorescent CPDs (b-CPDs) as the response signal and yellow fluorescent CPDs (y-CPDs) as the internal reference material. The blue fluorescence of b-CPDs was gradually quenched with increasing Fe3+ ion concentration, while the yellow fluorescence was essentially unaffected. Interestingly, TBHQ can restore the fluorescence intensity of b-CPDs. Meanwhile, the fluorescence mechanism of Fe3+ on b-CPDs was investigated by density functional theory, both after the addition of TBHQ, and CPDs were released and their fluorescence was restored due to the competitive reaction of TBHQ-Fe3+. Thus, the d-CPDs probe was able to detect Fe3+ accurately in an “on–off” manner and thus TBHQ in an “off–on” manner. At an optimal Fe3+ concentration, the ratiometric sensing system provided fine linearities for determining TBHQ in the range from 0.2 to 2 μM and an ingenious detection limit of 0.052 μM. The CPDs ratiometric fluorescent probe designed in this work may have a broader application in the rapid, susceptive, and low-cost determination of TBHQ in various foods.

Zero-Dimensional Carbon Nanomaterials for Fluorescent Sensing and Imaging

“…Interestingly, the fluorescence of b-CPDs can be restored owing to the competitive reaction of tertiary butylhydroquinone–Fe 3+ . The CPDs ratiometric fluorescent probes in this study enabled the rapid, sensitive, and cost-effective determination of tert -butylhydroquinone in various foods …”

Ratiometric Fluorescence Determination of Trace Nitrite in Kimchi Based on Bsa-Templated Cu-Au Alloyed Nanoclusters (Bsa-Cuauncs)

“…Fluorescent analytical methods have been used to detect nitrite by reason of their high sensitivity, simple operation and rapid detection (Liu et al 2013;Yue et al 2020), but the single or indirect response is susceptible to background interference. Interestingly, the ratiometric uorescence was a strategy to determine the ratio of emission intensity at two different wavelengths, which can effectively avoid environmental interference and promote the stability of the uorescence sensor (Xu et al 2023). The design of direct-response ratiometric uorescence sensors will enable stable and accurate detection of nitrite in food.…”