Fluorescence ‘turn-on’ probe for Al3+ detection in water based on ZnS/ZnO quantum dots with excellent selectivity and stability

In this work, an efficient and stable fluorescent probe for Al3+ was established. The fluorescent probe based on the fluorescence 'turn-on' mode of zinc sulfide crystal composite zinc oxide quantum dots (ZnS/ZnO QDs). The ZnS/ZnO QDs were synthesized via two-step method using L-Cysteine (L-Cys) as a sulfur source and stabilizer. In the synthesis of ZnS/ZnO QDs, the fluorescence of zinc oxide quantum dots (ZnO QDs) decreased and its stability increased in aqueous solution after the addition of L-Cys. In addition, the as-synthesized ZnS/ZnO QDs shows fluorescent enhancement to Al3+. The ZnS/ZnO QDs based fluorescence 'turn-on' probe presented wide linear ranges (1 nM–8 μM and 8–100 μM). The availability of as-established sensing probe was also estimated by real water sample tests. Furthermore, the fluorescent enhancing mechanism was carried out by recording the fluorescent lifetime of samples, which might be related to the QDs dispersion and charge transfer weaken.