Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
CHEMISTRYSELECT, cilt.11, sa.11, 2026 (SCI-Expanded, Scopus)
Carbon quantum dots (CQDs) are widely used nanomaterials due to their low cost, photostability, and tunable surface chemistry. However, their inherently cross-reactive nature often limits their applicability in real-world sensing scenarios. In this study, we turn this limitation into an advantage by employing a cross-reactive sensor array strategy. By doping CQDs with different heteroatoms, their interactions with target analytes can be modulated to produce distinct photoluminescence (PL) response patterns (fingerprints). Within a green-chemistry framework, undoped and nitrogen-, sulfur-, and boron-doped CQDs (N-CQDs, S-CQDs, and B-CQDs) were synthesized via a microwave-assisted method using pomegranate molasses as a renewable carbon source. These sensing elements were integrated into an optical nose platform for the detection of heavy metal ions. Rather than pursuing single-ion specificity, the system relies on PL fingerprinting, and the resulting multidimensional data were analyzed using chemometric models: Linear Discriminant Analysis (LDA) for qualitative discrimination and Support Vector Machines (SVM) for quantitative prediction. To improve portability and cost-efficiency, the sensor array was further implemented on a paper-based platform. The environmental-friendliness performance of the developed method was evaluated using the Analytical GREEnness (AGREE) metric, which confirmed a favorable green-chemistry profile.