Sonoelectrochemical nitrided graphene nanosheets with vacancies and their applications for catalysis and sensing of uric acid oxidation

Tzu-Chen Huang; Ying-Lung Chen; Mei-I Wu; Pei-Ssu Lin; Po-Yu Chen; Chien-Liang Lee

doi:10.1016/j.ultsonch.2023.106589

Sonoelectrochemical nitrided graphene nanosheets with vacancies and their applications for catalysis and sensing of uric acid oxidation

Ultrason Sonochem. 2023 Oct:99:106589. doi: 10.1016/j.ultsonch.2023.106589. Epub 2023 Sep 4.

Authors

Tzu-Chen Huang¹, Ying-Lung Chen¹, Mei-I Wu¹, Pei-Ssu Lin¹, Po-Yu Chen², Chien-Liang Lee³

Affiliations

¹ Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering, National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology, Kaohsiung 807, Taiwan.
² Department of Medicinal and Applied Chemistry, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung 807, Taiwan.
³ Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering, National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology, Kaohsiung 807, Taiwan. Electronic address: cl_lee@nkust.edu.tw.

Abstract

A sonoelectrochemical method for preparing N-doped defective graphene nanosheets (N/O-dGNs) with point defects and 5-9 or 5-8-5 vacancies and oxygen-containing groups was successfully demonstrated. In this one-pot approach, the N-bonding configuration and N content of N/O-dGNs were finely tuned by the ultrasonic power (192, 320, and 640 W). The N content in atomic percentage (at%) for N/O-dGN (N/O-dGN_320W) with point defects and 5-8-5 vacancy prepared at 320 W power was 5.6 at%, greater than 3.0 at% and 2.6 at% for N/O-dGN with point defects and 5-9 vacancies at 192 W and 640 W power (N/O-dGN_192W and N/O-dGN_640W), respectively. N-bonding sites on N/O-dGN_320W were dominantly amine N (2.1 at%) and pyrrolic N (2.4 at%). Additionally, the electrocatalytic activity of N/O-dGN_192W, N/O-dGN_320W, and N/O-dGN_640W was successfully demonstrated for the sequential uric acid (UA) oxidation reaction (UOR), in which N/O-dGN_320W displayed a significant mass activity (2.51 A/g). As in the transient catalysis of UOR, N/O-dGN_320W with amine N showed 400.8 μA mM^-1 cm^-2 in sensitivity within a wide linear analysis range (1.5 × 10^-2-6 mM) for amperometrically sensing UA. The results of real sample experiments using serum samples further demonstrated the potential of N/O-dGN_320W as a non-enzymatic UA sensor.

Keywords: Defect effect; Human health; Layered materials; Non-enzymatic sensor; Ultrasound.