Journal Articles
Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://idr.nitk.ac.in/handle/123456789/19884
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Item Eco-friendly ink formulation of column purified carbon dots from GABA for anticounterfeiting applications(Elsevier B.V., 2023) Ullal, N.; Dhanya, D.; Kulkarni, S.D.; Sinha, R.K.; Anand, P.J.; Bhat K, U.K.Forgery of valuable products causes a negative impact on the society as well as the economy of the country. There is a growing demand to not only differentiate or authenticate genuine documents/products but also to protect their integrity. Carbon dots (CDs) are a class of fluorescent nanomaterials that are well-known for their facile synthesis, good photostability and less toxicity profile. The current research work focuses on the preparation of CDs via hydrothermal method using γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) that contains amino and carboxylic groups. Column chromatography technique is adopted to purify the GABA-derived CDs from the reactants and by-products. The fourth fraction obtained after column purification containing CDs with fluorescence emission in the visible region is chosen for further studies. The presence of spherical CDs confirmed through TEM imaging are chemically characterised using SAED, EDS, DLS, FTIR, XPS, Raman and XRD spectroscopy. The blue (λem = 490 nm) and green (λem = 538 nm) emitting CDs present in the fourth fraction displayed a fluorescence lifetime of 1.90 ns and 2.02 ns. Theoretical studies are performed using B3LYP/6-31G(d,p) theory level on different plausible structures. The HOMO-LUMO band gap of 2.3 eV deduced using DFT calculation is in close agreement with the optical band gap of 2.6 eV derived from Tauc plot. A complex forming mechanism is proposed for the fluorescence quenching of CDs upon examining the EDS data of the precipitate obtained upon addition of cupric ions. Further, the CDs are used as pigments to formulate a water-based ink for flexographic printing on UV-dull paper substrate. The printed samples exhibited good colorimetric values, lightfastness, and rub resistance. The security features of the ink film include an UV-induced yellow fluorescence, which will be known to the forger and a secondary quenching of fluorescence when exposed to cupric ions, which can be used by the user to validate document/product authenticity. This stimulus responsive optical property is also explored in the design of ionochromic security paper based on cupric ion induced fluorescence quenching of CDs for data storage and decryption. Moreover, the lesser surface roughness and electrical parameter values obtained for the print proofs could be further explored for the potential application of CD-derived ink in electronic anticounterfeiting. © 2023 Elsevier B.V.Item Fluorene-vanillin hybrid: A multifunctional fluorophore for latent fingerprint detection and sustainable offset security ink development(Elsevier B.V., 2025) K Jain, R.; P.j, A.; Dhanya, D.; Bhagavath, P.; Vatti, A.K.; Mahadeva Prasad, M.P.; K, U.B.; Alex, A.Fluorophores play a pivotal role in forensic science and anticounterfeit applications due to their unique and distinct emission features, which enable visualization and authentication. In the pursuit for advanced fluorescent pigments, ortho vanillin-fluorene Schiff base (OAF) with bright orange fluorescence was synthesized using a cost-effective, simple, and one-step method. This fluorophore was highly effective in developing latent fingerprints (LFPs), enabling visualization of level 1–3 features on nonporous glass and semi-porous leather under 365 nm UV light. The interaction between glycine in the fingerprint residue on glass substrate and OAF was analyzed through computational studies and further validated using ATR-FTIR analysis. The FESEM images of the latent prints revealed detailed surface morphology and particle distribution on the ridges of the fingermarks. Further, fluorescent images of LFPs were successfully developed on sticky paint, moist glass, multicolored compact disc, and uneven leaf surface, demonstrating the material's versatility on challenging substrates. Moreover, the powder dusting of composite powder of OAF and JUP-AS120, a commercially available pigment enabled enhanced LFP visualization on glass under both 365 and 980 nm light sources for better contrast and minimal background fluorescence, while minimising degradation of fingerprint residues over time. In addition, an OAF spray was formulated using nitrocellulose resin, ethyl acetate and carbitol for broader forensic application, which facilitated LFP visualization down to fine minutiae details on porous, semi-porous and non-porous substrates. Furthermore, to address the growing rates of counterfeited products/banknotes/security documents, an ecofriendly composite security ink was formulated using OAF and JUP-AS120 to obtain offset prints with excellent resistance to photobleaching and scuffing on paper substrate. The ink film exhibited multilevel authentication features: orange fluorescence under a 365 nm light source, and green and red emissions without and with a 610 nm band pass filter, respectively under 980 nm laser source, enhancing security and making forgery more challenging. Additionally, biocompatible OAF can be incorporated in ink pads to offer a dual layer of validation for fingerprints on security documents: optical authentication by leveraging the ink's fluorescence properties and biometric recognition through fingerprint patterns. © 2025 The Author(s)