Preparation of water-soluble CdSeS alloy quantum dots with small particle size and high fluorescence lifetime by using hydrodynamic cavitation technology and their application in Ag+ detection

In this study, hydrodynamic cavitation (HC) is used as a novel and simple large-scale preparation technique. Water-soluble CdSeS alloy quantum dots (QDs) were successfully prepared by using Cd(NO 3 ) 2 ·4H 2 O, Na 2 S·9H 2 O and selenium powder as cadmium, sulfur and selenium sources. The effects of cycle time, reaction temperature, inlet pressure and Se/S molar ratio on the morphology, size and optical properties of CdSeS QDs were investigated. The prepared CdSeS QDs were characterized by X-ray diffractometer, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, UV–vis absorption spectra, fluorescence emission spectra and fluorescence attenuation curves. Finally, under the conditions of 12 h cycle time, 3.0 bar inlet pressure, 60 °C reaction temperature and 0.5/0.5 Se/S molar ratio, the ternary alloy CdSeS QDs with 2.62 nm average particle size and 482.62 ns fluorescence lifetime was obtained. Furthermore, a mechanism of preparing CdSeS QDs by using the HC method was proposed to explain the process of CdSeS precipitates conversion to CdSeS QDs. In addition, it is also found that Ag + has a quenching effect on the prepared CdSeS QDs, which means that CdSeS QDs can be used as a fluorescence probe to specifically detect Ag + . This work not only provides a new possibility for large-scale preparation of high-performance QDs but also helps to understand the mechanism of CdSeS QDs as a metal ion selective fluorescence probe.