Direct Electrochemistry of Glucose Oxidase on a Three-Dimensional Porous Zirconium Phosphate–Carbon Aerogel Composite

Abstract

Biocompatible materials with large specific surface areas can play a crucial role in direct electron transfer between redox proteins and an electrode surface. Here, we report zirconium phosphate–carbon aerogel (ZrP-CA) composites with a large specific surface area and uniform nanopore distributions as matrix for glucose oxidase immobilization. The immobilized glucose oxidase displays two stable, well-defined redox peaks with an electron transfer rate constant of 9.34 s−1 in nitrogen-saturated phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) solution (0.1 M, pH 7.0), at a scan rate of 100 mV s−1. The modified electrode was also used as a glucose biosensor, which was found to exhibit a linear calibration range of 0.12–2.0 mM, sensitivity of 5.56 μA mM−1 cm−2 at an applied potential of −0.5 V, and detection limit of 34 μM based on a signal-to-noise ratio of 3. After 80 scan cycles, the decreases in the peak current were less than 8 %, indicating good stability of the as-prepared ZrP-CA. The unique characteristics of the ZrP-CA nanocomposite make it a good matrix for protein immobilization and biosensor preparation.