Rapid and Low-Cost N-Doped Carbon Dots Synthesis Based on Orange Peels for Highly Sensitive Detection of Ferric and Mercury Ions

Alansari, Rawan H.; Bakhsh, Esraa M.; Akhtar, Kalsoom; Altamimi, Lenah R.; Khan, Gul Aslam; Khan, Sher Bahadar

doi:10.3390/chemosensors14050112

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Rapid and Low-Cost N-Doped Carbon Dots Synthesis Based on Orange Peels for Highly Sensitive Detection of Ferric and Mercury Ions

by

Rawan H. Alansari

¹,

Esraa M. Bakhsh

^1,*

,

Kalsoom Akhtar

¹,

Lenah R. Altamimi

¹,

Gul Aslam Khan

² and

Sher Bahadar Khan

¹

Chemistry Department, Faculty of Science, King Abdulaziz University, P.O. Box 80203, Jeddah 21589, Saudi Arabia

²

Exploration Department, Seismic Party 02, OGDCL, Islamabad 44000, Pakistan

^*

Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

Chemosensors 2026, 14(5), 112; https://doi.org/10.3390/chemosensors14050112

Submission received: 7 March 2026 / Revised: 16 April 2026 / Accepted: 18 April 2026 / Published: 9 May 2026

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Colorimetric and Fluorescent Sensors: Current Status and Future Development)

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Abstract

Using orange peels as a biowaste, fluorescent N-CDs were prepared simply and rapidly through a one-step microwave-assisted method and urea as a nitrogen source. The synthesized N-CDs exhibited a high QY value of 47.12% compared to CDs prepared using different methods. Moreover, the N-CDs have good pH and thermal stability. N-CDs exhibited high sensitivity toward Fe(ІІІ), Hg(І), and Hg(ІІ) ions with low LOD values of about 0.0555, 0.15379, and 0.02505 μM, respectively. This approach is hopeful for the large-scale formation of N-CDs and could encourage their utilization as fluorescent chemosensors due to their affordability, simplicity, high efficiency, and environmental friendliness.

Keywords: carbon dots; chemosensor; heavy metals; fluorescence; detection limit

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MDPI and ACS Style

Alansari, R.H.; Bakhsh, E.M.; Akhtar, K.; Altamimi, L.R.; Khan, G.A.; Khan, S.B. Rapid and Low-Cost N-Doped Carbon Dots Synthesis Based on Orange Peels for Highly Sensitive Detection of Ferric and Mercury Ions. Chemosensors 2026, 14, 112. https://doi.org/10.3390/chemosensors14050112

AMA Style

Alansari RH, Bakhsh EM, Akhtar K, Altamimi LR, Khan GA, Khan SB. Rapid and Low-Cost N-Doped Carbon Dots Synthesis Based on Orange Peels for Highly Sensitive Detection of Ferric and Mercury Ions. Chemosensors. 2026; 14(5):112. https://doi.org/10.3390/chemosensors14050112

Chicago/Turabian Style

Alansari, Rawan H., Esraa M. Bakhsh, Kalsoom Akhtar, Lenah R. Altamimi, Gul Aslam Khan, and Sher Bahadar Khan. 2026. "Rapid and Low-Cost N-Doped Carbon Dots Synthesis Based on Orange Peels for Highly Sensitive Detection of Ferric and Mercury Ions" Chemosensors 14, no. 5: 112. https://doi.org/10.3390/chemosensors14050112

APA Style

Alansari, R. H., Bakhsh, E. M., Akhtar, K., Altamimi, L. R., Khan, G. A., & Khan, S. B. (2026). Rapid and Low-Cost N-Doped Carbon Dots Synthesis Based on Orange Peels for Highly Sensitive Detection of Ferric and Mercury Ions. Chemosensors, 14(5), 112. https://doi.org/10.3390/chemosensors14050112

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Rapid and Low-Cost N-Doped Carbon Dots Synthesis Based on Orange Peels for Highly Sensitive Detection of Ferric and Mercury Ions

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