Synthesis of Molecularly Imprinted Fluorescent Sensor Based on Biomass Derived Carbon Dots from Tomato Stalks for Detection of Tetracycline

In this work, a novel biomass derived carbon dots (CDs) with superior fluorescent properties were prepared by tomato straws. The selective, eco-friendly sensor for the detection of tetracycline (TC) was developed by grafting SiO2 molecular imprinted polymers onto the surface of CDs (CDs@SiO2-MIPs). This sensor combined the high selective adsorption property with the sensitivity of fluorescence detection, which sensing mechanism stems from the off fluorescent signal after the molecular imprinting specifically recognizing the target substance. Under optimal conditions, the fluorescence intensity of the sensor decreased linearly with increasing the concentration of TC from 1.00×10-7 to 5.00×10-4 mol/L. The detection limit of TC was 9.33 ×10-8 mol/L. This work provides a novel biomass derived CDs and a simple molecularly imprinted fluorescence sensing method for the detection of environmental organic pollutants.