Self-template formation of porous Co3O4 hollow nanoprisms for non-enzymatic glucose sensing in human serum

Danhua Ge; Yunqi Yang; Xiao Ni; Jinnan Dong; Qianying Qiu; Xue-Qiang Chu; Xiaojun Chen

doi:10.1039/d0ra06453j

Self-template formation of porous Co₃O₄ hollow nanoprisms for non-enzymatic glucose sensing in human serum

RSC Adv. 2020 Oct 19;10(63):38369-38377. doi: 10.1039/d0ra06453j. eCollection 2020 Oct 15.

Authors

Danhua Ge¹, Yunqi Yang¹, Xiao Ni¹, Jinnan Dong¹, Qianying Qiu¹, Xue-Qiang Chu¹, Xiaojun Chen¹

Affiliation

¹ College of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, Nanjing Tech University Nanjing 211800 PR China chenxj@njtech.edu.cn.

Abstract

A novel type of porous Co₃O₄ hollow nanoprism (HNP) was successfully prepared using tetragonal cobalt acetate hydroxide [Co₅(OH)₂(OAc)₈·2H₂O] as precursor by a facile solvothermal process and a subsequent calcination treatment. The morphology and structure of the Co₃O₄ HNPs were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), powder X-ray diffraction (XRD) and N₂ adsorption-desorption measurements. An enzyme-free glucose sensor was constructed based on the Co₃O₄ HNPs, and the electrochemical performance was tested by cyclic voltammetry (CV) and chronoamperometry. The as-prepared sensor exhibited a good electrocatalytic activity for glucose oxidation at the applied potential of 0.6 V in alkaline solution, with a high sensitivity of 19.83 μA mM^-1 cm^-2 and a high upper limit of 30 mM, which provide the potential for direct determination of blood glucose without any dilution pretreatment. The Co₃O₄ HNPs had a porous and tubular structure with a large amount of accessible active sites, which enhanced the mass diffusion and accelerated the electron transfer. Moreover, the sensor also demonstrated a desirable stability, selectivity and reproducibility, and could verify the non-enzymatic analysis of glucose in real samples.