Sustainable Synthesis of Biomass-Based Carbon Quantum Dots for Selective Fluorescent Recognition of Cr3+ and In Vitro Antioxidant Applications

The development of cost-effective, eco-friendly, sensitive, and efficient analytical platforms for the monitoring of metal ions holds profound practical value. In this work, edible fungus carbon quantum dots (Ef-CQDs) are synthesized via a facile hydrothermal route using edible fungus as a green carbon precursor, and a novel fluorescence sensing strategy is established for the rapid and selective detection of Cr3+ in environmental water matrices. Systematic optical investigations revealed that the as-prepared Ef-CQDs displayed outstanding selectivity toward Cr3+ over other coexisting metal ions. Meanwhile, the Ef-CQDs exhibited considerable scavenging activity toward hydroxyl radicals and DPPH radicals, endowing them with favorable antioxidant performance. When applied for Cr3+ determination in real environmental water samples, the proposed Ef-CQDs achieved satisfactory spiked recoveries ranging from 95.2% to 100.6%. This study provided a promising and sustainable approach for the green, rapid, and reliable monitoring of Cr3+ in complex aqueous environments.