Termite wings derived N-doped carbon nanodots: applications for Cu2⁺ sensing, fluorescent ink and flexible polymeric film

This study used a simple hydrothermal approach to create nitrogen-doped carbon nanodots (TWNCNDs) from termite wings. The TWNCNDs have high fluorescence (FL) quality with a quantum yield of 11.8%. In order to detect Cu²⁺ ions in aqueous circumstances selectively and sensitively, we made use of TWNCNDs by making use of the unusual optical features that they possessed. To evaluated the limit of detection (LOD) for TWNCNDs in the presence of metal ions by using the Stern-Volmer equation. The LOD for Cu²⁺ ions was 0.1 μM, and the detection range was from 0 to 0.5 μM. We demonstrated their adaptability and potential for practical industrial usage beyond their applications in analytical chemistry by using the strong blue emission features of the synthesized TWNCNDs as effective fluorescent ink as marking agents and TWNCNDs/PVA polymeric films in a range of commercial anti-counterfeiting applications.