A portable RGB sensing gadget for sensitive detection of Hg2+ using cysteamine-capped QDs as fluorescence probe

A facile one-pot method was proposed to synthesis cysteamine capped CdTe QDs with a high quantum yield 30%. In the synthesis process, nitrogen protection, ultrasonic treatment, and light irradiation were unnecessary. Additionally, potassium tellurite was used instead of Te powder as Te source, avoiding of the time-consuming Te powder dissolution process. The prepared QDs were found to be Hg2+ sensitive. The detection linear range for Hg2+ was from 5 to 300 nM, and the detection limit was calculated to be 1 nM. The detection mechanism was mainly ascribed to the electron transfer from cysteamine capped QDs to Hg2+, resulting in a fluorescence quenching phenomenon. In addition, we developed a portable RGB sensing gadget with the QDs as fluorescence probe for Hg2+ detection, and the linear range was from 5 to 200 nM. Furthermore, the gadget was applied for Hg2+ detection in tap water sample. The results showed that the average recoveries in real tap water sample were in the range from 97.2% to 115.3%, which indicated that accuracy and precision were satisfactory for practical application requirements.