Anti-counterfeiting application of fluorescent carbon dots derived from wasted coffee grounds

Anti-counterfeiting application have various challenges and issue of the luminescent materials which remain to be resolved, such as expensive cost, low synthetic yield and photo-bleaching effect. Since the carbon dots (CDs) derived from wasted organic materials exhibits cheap synthetic cost, noble photo-stability and high synthetic yield, CDs has been paid attention in the anticounterfeiting field. Herein, we report the synthesis of the fluorescent carbon dots derived from wasted coffee ground and their anti-counterfeiting application. The CDs prepared by hydrothermal synthesis shows uniform morphology with lattice structure. Also, the prepared CDs shows a hydrophilic nature and blue emission under UV excitation. In order to apply a CDs in the anticounterfeiting field, the resultant CDs ink was printed on various banknotes, by using a simple spray method. The anti-counterfeiting patterns exhibits a blue emission under UV excitation and excellent covertness under daylight with high resolution. These results indicate that the CDs derived from wasted coffee grounds can be applied as a promising luminescent materials in the anti-counterfeiting field.

Automated summary

Carbon dots derived from wasted coffee grounds show cheap synthetic cost and high stability, making them suitable for anti-counterfeiting applications. The carbon dots prepared by hydrothermal synthesis exhibit blue emission under UV excitation, which can generate blue luminescent anti-counterfeiting patterns.