Construction of an iron-loaded copper self-supporting sensor for sensitive electrochemical detection of nitrite
摘要
A Fe/Cu bimetal composite catalyst self-supported on commercial copper foam (Fe2O3/CuO@CF) is synthesized by chemical oxidation followed by calcination and evaluated for electrochemical nitrite sensing. The surface of the copper foam is uniformly covered with submicron sphere arrays composed of the hetero-interfacing Fe2O3 and CuO crystals. This unique structure presents good local wetting, surface hydrophilicity, and nitrite enrichment, thereby heightening nitrate capture efficiency and underpinning the ultrasensitive detection of nitrite. Electrochemical measurements uncover that Fe2O3/CuO@CF exhibits a broad detection range (4–1377 µM), a low detection limit (0.72 µM), and high sensitivity (3573 µA mM cm−2 or 2379 µA mM cm−2 within a low or high nitrite concentration range) for nitrite. This design concept offers new insights for building superb electrochemical sensor electrodes with promising applications in environmental monitoring and food safety analysis.