Dimethylsulfoxide functionalized cadmium sulfide quantum dot for heavy metal ion detection

Abstract Heavy metal ions (HMIs) detection in the aquatic, environmental and biological systems is of tremendous interest owing to their adverse effects on the ecosystem and human health, depending on the dose and its toxicity. The calorimetric sensor acts as a potential scavenger for detecting HMIs such as mercury, lead, copper, etc., which is reliable and more sensitive towards metal ions. In this work, chemically synthesized self-assembled cadmium sulfide quantum dots (CdS QDs) were characterized using X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, UV-visible spectroscopy, transmission electron spectroscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy which confirms the structural and morphological formation of QD and it act as a the DMSO@CdS QDs colorimetric sensing probe for the detection of copper, mercury and lead with the high selectivity and sensitivity with the limit of detection of 179.5 nM, 58 and 60 μM. The on-site detection is capable of monitoring heavy metals in environmentally polluted samples.