Sp2 Domains Research Articles

Precise Regulation Strategy for Fluorescence Wavelength of Aggregation-Induced Emission Carbon Dots.

Aggregation-induced emission (AIE) carbon dot (CDs) in solid state with tunable multicolor emissions have sparked significant interest in multidimensional anti-counterfeiting. However, the realization of solid-state fluorescence (SSF) by AIE effect and the regulation of fluorescence wavelength in solid state is a great challenge. In order to solve this dilemma, the AIE method to prepare multi-color solid-state CDs with fluorescence wavelengths ranging from bright blue to red emission is employed. Specifically, by using thiosalicylic acid and carbonyl hydrazine as precursors, the fluorescence wavelength can be accurately adjusted by varying the reaction temperature from 150 to 230°C or changing the molar ratio of the precursors from 1:1 to 1:2. Structural analysis and theoretical calculations consistently indicate that increasing the sp2 domains or doping with graphite nitrogen both cause a redshift in the fluorescence wavelength of CDs in the solid state. Moreover, with the multi-dimensional and adjustable fluorescence wavelength, the application of AIE CDs in the fields of multi-anti-counterfeiting encryption, ink printing, and screen printing is demonstrated. All in all, this work opens up a new way for preparing solid-state multi-color CDs using AIE effect, and further proposes an innovative strategy for controlling fluorescence wavelengths.

Donor-Acceptor Type Supra-Carbon-Dots with Long Lifetime Photogenerated Radicals Boosting Tumor Photodynamic Therapy.

Carbon dots (CDs) have gained significant interest because of their potential in biomedical applications. Nevertheless, developing CDs with efficient photoinduced charge separation for tumor photodynamic therapy (PDT) remains a challenge. This study presents a novel class of supra-carbon-dots (supra-CDs) developed by fusing red emissive CDs with 2,3-dicyanohydroquinone (DCHQ) via post-solvothermal treatment. In supra-CDs, the core, acting as electron donors, is formed by assembled CDs with substantial sp2 domains, the fused interface originating from DCHQ with electron-withdrawing groups functions as the electron acceptor. This configuration creates the unique donor-acceptor nanostructure. Upon white light irradiation, the excited electrons from the assembled CDs were transferred to the electron-withdrawing interface, whereas the photogenerated holes were retained within the assembled CDs as radicals, leading to effective photoinduced charge separation. The separated photogenerated electrons then react with oxygen to generate superoxide radicals. Simultaneously, the photogenerated holes undergo oxidation of crucial cellular substrates. This dual action underscores the exceptional cell-killing efficacy of supra-CDs. Moreover, the increased particle sizes (~20 nm) ensure supra-CDs to exhibit a notable capacity for tumor accumulation via the improved permeability and retention effect, thereby achieving satisfactory anti-tumor PDT efficacy in a mouse subcutaneous tumor model.

Solid-State Fluorescent Carbon Dots with Hydrophobic Modification Induced Red Emission for White Light-Emitting Diodes.

Herein, we developed red solid-state fluorescent carbon dots (SSF-CDs) through a one-step solvothermal method, utilizing acetone as the carbonization solvent. Optical and structural characterization revealed that the sp2 domains in the core of the R-CDs were consistently interrupted and that the oxygen-containing groups on the surface were replaced by alkyl groups. This substitution mitigates excessive π-π interactions, thereby preventing quenching of fluorescence in the solid state. Adjusting the molar ratio of citric acid (CA) and urea yielded solid fluorescent carbon dots (CDs) with panchromatic luminescence, indicating enhanced π-π interactions and more pronounced red shifts in the emission peaks. Furthermore, we found that this strategy is applicable to other carbon sources, including phenylenediamine, salicylic acid, and lignin. This research presents an innovative strategy for the fabrication of solid-state luminescent CDs.

The Differential Influence of Biochar and Graphite Precursors on the Structural, Optical, and Electrochemical Properties of Graphene Oxide

This study investigates the synthesis and characterization of graphene oxide (GO) derived from two distinct precursors: graphite and pyrolyzed acacia wood sawdust via a modified Hummers method. As hypothesized, the commercial graphite-derived GO (GOG) exhibited a more ordered structure characterized by a well-defined diffraction peak with interlayer separation of 0.86 nm and crystalline order of 8.18 nm, consistent with extensive oxidation. Conversely, the biochar-derived GO (GOB) displayed a heterogenous structure with a less defined (001) plane and an emerging (002) plane corresponding to mixed hybridization states (sp2/sp3) and mixed crystallinity at different regions in the materials. Additionally, it retained excess aromatic carbons (C-H bond) on its basal plane increasing its disorderliness and defect density. As a result, despite the G bands showing greater incorporation of functional groups in GOG, GOB recorded a higher ID/IG ratio (0.95 vs. 0.93). By retaining a relatively higher proportion of sp2 domains, GOB demonstrated enhanced light absorption through additional electronic transmission evident by its lower bandgap energy (2.93) compared to GOG (4.20), extending absorption into the visible range. Its improved properties were further characterized by enhanced conductivity, surface area, porosity, and decreased charge transfer and ion diffusion resistance. The study emphasizes that the nature of defects and their distribution, influenced by the precursor material can influence GO properties than those predicted by oxidation levels alone. It opens a new pathway to exploring bio-precursors and their potential in tailoring the properties of GO for specific applications.

Fabrication and Efficient Interfacial Assembly of Bright Red-Emitting Carbon Quantum Dots for Security-Warning Textiles.

Carbon quantum dots (CQDs) have attracted more attentions due to their multiple performances. However, the fabrication of long-wavelength emitting CQDs with aliphatic precursors still remains a challenge, mainly because it is difficult to generate large sp2 domains to reduce energy gap, which is not conducive to a redshift of the luminescence peak. Hereon, by regulating the pH of citric acid and thiourea mixture, a N, S co-doped CQD emitting bright red fluorescence at 635nm is successfully fabricated through the solvothermal reaction under acidic condition, achieving a high quantum yield of 32.66%. Solvatochromic effects of the CQDs are discussed through theoretical equations and models, which confirm that the hydrogen-bonding interaction dominates the fluorescence emission behavior of CQDs in polar solvents. Besides, a feasible strategy is proposed to prepare an anti-counterfeiting textile via the deposition of red-emitting CQDs onto cotton fibers, through rapidly evaporating the preferred organic solvent. As expected, the CQD-decorated textiles exhibit encouraging anti-counterfeiting and security-warning functions, along with underwater and long-distance detectability, washability, and sun resistance. It is worth noting that the present work is innovative in realizing the application of red-light-emitting CQDs in the fields of security-warning textiles.

Tracking the quality of graphene oxide suspension during long-term storage

Graphene oxide is a popular material because of not only its cost–efficient production but also its unique properties. However, after long-term storage, several changes occur in the structure of graphene oxide obtained using the modified Hummers’ method, affecting its stability and physicochemical properties. Despite the obvious problem, there is only a limited number of works devoted to ageing factors, their impact on the properties and structure of graphene oxide itself, and operational modes of materials and devices based on graphene oxide. Therefore, to facilitate the widespread industrial application of graphene oxide, it is crucial to establish standardized protocols for storage and quality assessment of graphene oxide. In this paper, the prepared samples were extensively characterized using various techniques, including transmission electron microscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, UV–Vis and fluorescence spectroscopy techniques. Among the various analytical methods, comprehensive spectroscopic analysis of the absorption and fluorescence properties has proven to be the most sensitive to sample ageing. We investigated the change in optical and physicochemical properties of graphene oxide during its long-term storage under various conditions. It was found that graphene oxide precipitated during storage, and the O/C ratio in graphene oxide decreased slightly from 0.49 to 0.47. Still, the type of oxygen-containing functional groups did not change, which might indicate possible intra-structural changes. Using transmission electron microscopy, molecular dynamic and density functional theory simulation, we showed that the rearrangement of functional groups on the surface leads to the formation of large sp2 domains that interact with each other, leading to aggregation of the graphene oxide.

Ex Situ Covalent Functionalization of Germanene via 1,3-Dipolar Cycloaddition: A Promising Approach for the Bandgap Engineering of Group-14 Xenes.

Group-14 Xenes beyond graphene such as silicene, germanene, and stanene have recently gained a lot of attention for their peculiar electronic properties, which can be tuned by covalent functionalization. Up until now, reported methods for the top-down synthesis of covalently functionalized silicene and germanene typically yield multilayered flakes with a minimum thickness of 100nm. Herein, the ex situ covalent functionalization of germanene (fGe) is reported via 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition of the azomethine ylide generated by the decarboxylative condensation of 3,4-dihydroxybenzaldehyde and sarcosine. Amorphous few-layered sheets (average thickness of ≈6nm) of dipolarophile germanene (GeX) are produced by thermal dehydrogenation of its fully saturated parent precursor, germanane (GeH). Spectroscopic evidence confirmed the emergence of the dipolarophilic sp2 domains due to the dehydrogenation of germanane, and their sp3 hybridization due to the covalent functionalization of germanene. Elemental mapping of the functionalized germanene revealed flakes with a very high abundance of carbon uniformly covering the germanium backbone. The 500meV increase of the optical bandgap of germanene observed upon functionalization paves the way toward bandgap engineering of other group-14 Xenes, which could potentially be a major turning point in the fields of electronics, electrocatalysis, and photocatalysis.

Axially Growing Carbon Quantum Ribbon with 2D Stacking Control for High-Stability Solar Cell.

Although power conversion efficiency (PCE) of solar cells (SCs) continues to improve, they are still far from practical application because of their complex synthesis process, high cost and inferior operational stability. Carbon quantum dots with high material stability and remarkable photoluminescence are successfully used in light-emitting diodes. A good light emitter should also be an efficient SC according to the photon balance in Shockley-Quieisser formulation, in which all excitons are ultimately separated. However, the finite quantum-sized sp2 domain leads to tight exciton bonding, and highly delocalized electron clouds in irregular molecular stacks form disordered charge transfer, resulting in severe energy loss. Herein, an axially growing carbon quantum ribbon (AG-CQR) with a wide optical absorption range of 440-850nm is reported. Structural and computational studies reveal that AG-CQRs (aspect ratio ≈2:1) with carbonyl groups at both ends regulate energy level and efficiently separate excitons. The stacking-controlled two-dimensional AG-CQR film further directionally transfers electrons and holes, particularly in AB stacking mode. Using this film as active layer alone, the SCs yield a maximum PCE of 1.22%, impressive long-term operational stability of 380h, and repeatability. This study opens the door for the development of new-generation carbon-nanomaterial-based SCs for practical applications.

Defect-controlled fabrication of reduced graphene oxide/ZnO/PMMA-based solid-state optical limiting filters with SA/RSA switching property

A solid-state optical limiting filter was fabricated by noncovalently functionalizing a graphene-based nanocomposite with a polymer. Graphene oxide was reduced by varying reducing agent concentration and functionalized with metal oxide nanoparticles to enhance electronic transitions and third-order nonlinear optical characteristics. The nanocomposite was dispersed over the PMMA polymer framework, and thin films with μm-scale thickness were fabricated using the dip coating method. XRD analysis confirmed the wurtzite crystal structure of ZnO nanoparticles and the amorphous nature of PMMA. The carbon structural integrity was analyzed using Raman spectra. Linear optical studies revealed a redshift in the π-π* transition peak in rGO, suggesting enhanced conjugation. Third-order nonlinear refraction and absorption properties were assessed using the Z-scan technique, revealing a switching behavior in nonlinear absorption at different input intensities. An increase in the relative concentration of sp2 domains enhanced the nonlinear absorption. Optical limiting potential, determined using open aperture Z-scan data, yielded a threshold value of 0.066 GW/cm2. This study aims to develop a solid-state optical filter with a high laser damage threshold by adjusting the reduction rate, tuning defect levels, and analyzing its effect on the optical limiting potential.

Carbon dots with tunable excitation-independent fluorescence and organelle-specific targeting via core graphitization and surface groups engineering

Single-emission fluorescence and non-specific cellular organelle-targeting limit the application of carbon dots (CDs) in bio-imaging. Here, we proposed an adjustable strategy for synthesis of four CDs: Tm1-, Tm2-, Tma-, and Tp-CDs. The synthetic scheme was designed with tartaric acid and m-/p-phenylenediamine as precursors and water/acetone as solvent through hydrothermal/solvothermal synthesis and (or) column chromatography isolation. The maximum productivity of the CDs was 56.2 % and the highest fluorescence quantum yield was 47.8 %. These CDs emitted excitation-independent blue, green, and yellow fluorescence, respectively. The red shift of CDs fluorescence was caused by increasing graphitized conjugated sp2 domain and graphitic nitrogen content of carbon core. The hydrophilicity/lipophilicity and protonation ability of CDs determined their cellular uptake, intracellular trafficking and subcellular targets, including endoplasmic reticulum, lysosomes and nucleus. These CDs have the potential application in fluorescence visualization of live bacteria and in the organelle-targeted imaging of living mammalian, fungal, and plant cells. The study provides novel insights into rational design of CDs with multi-color fluorescence and organelle-specific targeting in live cells.

The assembly-defective phenotype of an FIV Gag polyprotein containing the SIV nucleocapsid zinc finger motifs is reversed by including the SIV SP2 domain in the chimeric protein

To gain insight into the functional relationship between the nucleocapsid (NC) domains of the Gag polyproteins of feline and simian immunodeficiency viruses, FIV and SIV, respectively, we generated two FIV Gag chimeric proteins containing different SIV NC and gag sequences. A chimeric FIV Gag protein (NC1) containing the SIV two zinc fingers motifs was incapable of assembling into virus-like particles. By contrast, another Gag chimera (NC2) differing from NC1 by the replacement of the C-terminal region of the FIV NC with SIV SP2 produced particles as efficiently as wild-type FIV Gag. Of note, when the chimeric NC2 Gag polyprotein was expressed in the context of the proviral DNA in feline CrFK cells, wild-type levels of virions were produced which encapsidated 50% of genomic RNA when compared to the wild-type virus.

Boron-Nitrogen-Edged Biomass-Derived Carbon: A Multifunctional Approach for Colorimetric Detection of H2O2, Flame Retardancy, and Triboelectric Nanogenerator.

Enhancing the concentration and type of nitrogen (N) dopants within the Sp2-carbon domain of carbon recycled from biomass sources is an efficient approach to mimic CNT, GO, and rGO to activate oxidants such as H2O2, excluding toxic chemicals and limiting reaction steps. However, monitoring the kind and concentration of N species in the Sp2-C domain is unlikely with thermal treatments only. A high temperature for graphitization reduces N moieties, leading to low electron density. This inhibits H2O2 adsorption and activation on catalyst surfaces. In this study, coffee waste (CW) is converted into B, N-doped biochar (BXNbY) using boric acid-assisted pyrolysis (H3BO3mass = X and carbonization temperature = Y) under N2 to overcome the challenge. The B dopant regulates the concentration and type of N, provides Lewis's acid sites, and converts graphitic-N to pyridine-N in BXNbY. The optimized B3Nb900 exhibits excellent colorimetric sensing performance toward H2O2 with a low detection limit (36.9nM) and high selectivity in the presence of many interferences and milk samples due to high pyridinic-N and Sp2 domain sizes. Interestingly, B enhances other properties of N-containing CW-derived carbon and introduces self-extinguishing and tribopositive properties. Hence, BXNbY-coated polyurethane foam shows excellent flame retardancy and energy harvesting performance.

The carbon dots with near-infrared electrochemiluminescence emission and low excitation potential for ultrasensitive analysis of microRNA-222

In this work, nitrogen and sulfur codoped near-infrared emission carbon dots (N,S-NIR-CDs) were used as neoteric electrochemiluminescence (ECL) emitters with high efficiency to construct a biosensor for ultrasensitive analysis of microRNA-222 (miRNA-222), which has been regarded as prospective biomarkers for early cancer diagnosis. Impressively, compared to conventional CDs with short ECL wavelength and large excitation voltage, N,S-NIR-CDs possessed wide sp2 domains and narrow band gap, leading to the near-infrared ECL emission at 680 nm and low excitation potential from −1.0 to 0 V, which not only decreased the photochemical damage for biomolecules but also reduced the side reaction. Moreover, an improved T7 Exonuclease induced cascade amplification (EICA) strategy was designed to transform trace miRNA-222 into plentiful output DNA in dual-cycle for greatly improving the target conversion efficiency. Therefore, by combining the N,S-NIR-CDs as neoteric ECL emitters and EICA strategy as signal amplifier, the constructed ECL biosensor could realize the ultrasensitive analysis of miRNA-222 with a identification limit of 5.65 aM and successfully employed in miRNA-222 analysis from liver cancer cell (HCCLM3 and MHCC-97L) lysate. This strategy developed a kind of neoteric CDs with NIR ECL emission and low excitation potential to establish a highly efficient biosensor for biomarker analysis, which prepared a road for early diseases diagnosis and lied a foundation for biological ECL imaging.

Highly ion-selective graphene-oxide-based membranes for nanofluidic osmotic energy conversion

Graphene oxide (GO) membranes have shown great potential for water treatment and osmotic energy conversion. However, the inherent challenge with GO membranes lies in their instability in water. While reduction techniques can improve stability, they simultaneously compromise selective ion transport properties due to the loss of functional groups. Here, we report preassembly modified GO (GOTA) membranes by using tannic acid (TA) as modification reagent. It is found that the TA molecules not only act as reducing agent, enhancing the aqueous stability of the membrane by generating stacked graphitic sp2 domains but also serve as intercalating agent, improving the selective ion transport properties by creating localized areas with high charge density and enlarged interlayer spacing. The cation selective number of GOTA membranes is ∼0.94–0.89 for different salinity gradients, much better than the thermally reduced GO membranes. In energy conversion system, the output power density approaches ∼0.32 W m−2 for the artificial seawater and river water with energy conversion efficiency of 41.7%. Meanwhile, the GOTA membranes exhibit excellent structural stability in various solution environments. This work demonstrates the importance of nanofluidic structure in improving the performance of ion-selective membranes and provides insights into the construction of advanced osmotic energy conversion system.

Symmetry-Triggered Tunable Phosphorescence Lifetime of Graphene Quantum Dots in a Solid State.

Studying the phosphorescent mechanisms of carbon nanostructures synthesized by the "bottom-up" approach is key to understanding the structure modulation and the interfacial properties of carbon nanostructures. In this work, the relationships among symmetry of precursors in the "bottom-up" synthesis, structures of products, and phosphorescence lifetimes of graphene quantum dots (GQDs) are studied. The symmetry matching of precursors in the formation of a D6h graphene-like framework is considered the key factor in controlling the separability of sp2 domains in GQDs. As the separability of sp2 domains in GQDs increases, the phosphorescence lifetimes (14.8-125.5ms) of GQDs in the solid state can be tuned. Machine learning is used to define the degree of disorder (S) of the GQD structure, which quantitatively describes the different space groups of precursors. The negative correlation between S and the oscillator strength of GQDs is uncovered. Therefore, S can be recognized as reflective of oscillator strength in the GQD structure. Finally, based on the correlations found between the structures and phosphorescence lifetimes of GQDs, GQDs with an ultralong phosphorescence lifetime (28.5s) are obtained. Moreover, GQDs with visible phosphorescence emission (435-618nm) are synthesized.

Unraveling fluorescent mechanism of biomass-sourced carbon dots based on three major components: Cellulose, lignin, and protein

The complexity of biomass components leads to significant variations in the performance of biomass-based carbon dots (CDs). To shed light on this matter, this study presents a comparative analysis of the fluorescence properties of CDs using pure cellulose, lignin, and protein as models. Three CDs showed different fluorescent properties, resulting from the structure difference and carbonization behavior in the hydrothermal. The relatively gentle thermal degradation of proteins allows the macromolecular structure of amino acids to be preserved. This preservation results in a more regular lattice structure, a larger sp2 domain size, and N-doping, which contribute to the highest quantum yield (QY) of 8.7% of the CDs. In contrast, cellulose undergoes more severe thermal degradation with large amounts of small molecules generated, resulting in the CDs with fewer surface defects, more irregular lattice structures, and lower QY. These results provide a guideline for the design of carbon dots from different biomass.

Effect of aggregation configuration of molecular fluorophore CZA on photoluminescence properties of carbon dots

The effect of aggregation configuration of molecular fluorophore citrazinic acid (CZA) on the photoluminescence (PL) properties of carbon dots (CDs) has been investigated using first-principles method. The structural stability of all aggregates has been analyzed, and the results show that the most stable structures are J-type CZA aggregates with head-to-tail configurations and the CZA/CD aggregates are bonded by replacing H atoms on the CD edges with de-OH from the pyridine ring of CZA. The luminescent properties of CZA/CD aggregates are mainly affected by the binding modes and binding sites. When the sites belong to electron-donating groups, electron-withdrawing groups or sp2 domain, the PL spectra of CDs are shifted and the luminescent intensities are significantly enhanced. The results suggest that covalently bonded CZA/CD aggregates are responsible for the high fluorescence quantum yield of CD. Moreover, the distance between the centers of the two pyridine rings in H-type CZA dimers less than 3.5 Å is prone to π-π stacking, leading to fluorescence quenching of aggregates. The present work is helpful in understanding the effect of molecular fluorophores on the PL properties of CDs and provides theoretical guidance for the controllable synthesis of CDs.

Synthesis of Multicolor Carbon Dots Catalyzed by Inorganic Salts with Tunable Nonlinear Optical Properties.

The nonlinear optical properties of carbon dots have been in the spotlight in recent years. In light of the complexity and diversity of factors affecting the nonlinear optical properties of carbon dots, how to reveal the origin and physical mechanism of the nonlinear optical properties of carbon dots accurately has become a problem. In this work, a template-free method was designed to prepare carbon dots via solid-phase reaction with phloroglucinol as a single carbon source and sodium bisulfate as the catalyst. This method is simple, green, safe, and easy to be prepared on a large scale. Three carbon dots with different luminous colors were obtained by simply adjusting the reaction temperature. The rise of reaction temperature affects the surface functional groups, and then hinders the luminescence of surface states, leading to the change of luminescence properties. The nonlinear optical properties of carbon dots were analyzed by the Z-scan technique. Surprisingly, all carbon dots have nonlinear optical responses, but there are differences in performance. Results prove the increase in sp2 domains may contribute to the significant improvement of the nonlinear optical properties of carbon dots, indicating a direction to improve the nonlinear optical properties of carbon dots.

Blue-light-driven photoactivity of L-cysteine-modified graphene quantum dots and their antibacterial effects

The widespread abuse of traditional antibiotics has led to a global rise in antibiotic-resistant bacteria, which give in return unprecedented health risks. Therefore, there is a large and urgent need for the development of new, smart antibacterial agents able to efficiently kill or inhibit bacterial growth. In this study, we investigated the antibacterial activity of S, N-doped Graphene Quantum Dots (GQDs) as a light-triggered antibacterial agent. Gamma irradiation was employed as a tool to achieve one-step modification of GQDs in the presence of L-cysteine amino acid as a source of heteroatoms. X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS), nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), and zeta potential measurements provided the necessary data to clarify the structure of modified dots and verify the introduction of both S- and N-atoms in GQDs structure, but also severe changes in the aromatic, sp2 domains. Namely, γ-irradiation caused a bonding of S atoms in 1.14 at.% mainly as thiol groups, and N in 1.81 at.% as amino groups, but sp2 contribution in GQD structure was lowered from 63.00 to 4.86 at.%, as measured in dots irradiated at a dose of 200 kGy. Fluorescence quenching measurements showed that L-cysteine-modified dots are able to bind to human serum albumin. The antibacterial activity of GQDs combined with 1 and 6 h of blue light (470 nm) irradiation was tested against 8 bacterial strains. GQD-cys-25 sample provided the best results, with minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) as low as 125 μg/mL against S. aureus, E. faecalis, and E. coli after only 1 h of blue light exposure.

Investigating the Adsorption Kinetics of Dimethoate, Malathion and Chlorpyrifos on Cellulose-Derived Activated Carbons: Understanding the Influence of Physicochemical Properties

In light of the escalating environmental concerns regarding pesticide accumulation, it is imperative to devise efficient strategies for their removal. Among the various options, activated carbons have emerged as promising candidates for adsorptive pesticide removal due to their many advantages, such as large surface area, well-developed porosity, and cost-effectiveness. However, the intricate relationship between the properties of these materials and their performance in pesticide adsorption remains largely unexplored. This study primarily focuses on examining the adsorption kinetics of three organophosphate pesticides: dimethoate, malathion (aliphatic), and chlorpyrifos (aromatic), using a range of cellulose-based activated carbon fibers with diverse specific surface areas, pore size distributions, and elemental compositions. By employing sophisticated data analysis tools, principal component analysis, and semi-empirical quantum chemical calculations, this study uncovers the importance of these distinct properties in efficiently removing structurally diverse pesticides. The results of the adsorption experiments suggested that these processes can be described using a pseudo-second-order kinetic model, which is confirmed via multiple linear regression. The obtained data suggest that the most effective carbon material for pesticide removal should have a pore diameter of approximately 4 nm, low oxygen content, a unimodal pore size distribution, and a high presence of sp2 domains. The insights from this research have the potential to guide the development of improved adsorbents and facilitate the rational selection of adsorbents tailored to specific pollutants based on their physicochemical properties and the pollutants’ chemical structure. By shedding light on the vital connection between adsorbent properties and performance, our findings significantly advance sustainable and effective pesticide removal, thereby fostering a cleaner and healthier environment.