Discrimination of tetracycline in water using a fluorescence probe based on UiO-67 Encapsulated with NCDs

Abstract

The large-scale production and abuse of antibiotics cause environmental pollution, threaten human health, and destroy the ecological balance. Efficient detection of these pollutants has emerged as a prominent topic in current research. In this study, we developed a novel material called UiO-67-NCDs by combining UiO-67 with nitrogen-doped carbon dots (NCDs) for sensing trace amounts of tetracycline (TC) in water. The NCDs were successfully introduced onto UiO-67 by the post-synthesis modification, resulting in a strong blue fluorescence at 445 nm. Thanks to the hydrogen bonding, π-π interactions and the internal filter effect (IFE) between UiO-67 and NCDs, UiO-67-NCDs was capable for TC sensing, exhibiting fluorescence quenching in 10 s with a limit of detection (LOD) of 32.9 nM (0–38 μM). The visual detection capabilities, high sensitivity, rapid detection time, and simplicity of the fluorescent probe make it a promising candidate for antibiotic detection in aqueous environments. This will further stimulate the interest of researchers in the in-depth study of MOFs and quantum dots and their applications in sensing.