Substantially boosting the performance of non-enzymatic glucose sensing: Introducing a novel CuS nanosheet anchored on hollow Ni(OH)2 nanosphere

Abstract

Excess levels of glucose in the blood can result in various complications such as heart disease, kidney failure, and blindness. Therefore, it is crucial to quantitatively measure blood glucose levels. At room temperature, by employing coordinating etching and precipitating process, and sulfidation reaction, we have developed a range of glucose sensing materials, including hollow Ni(OH)2@CuS (H-Ni(OH)2@CuS), Cu2O cubes, hollow CuS (H-CuS), hollow Ni(OH)2 (H-Ni(OH)2), and core–shell Cu2O@Ni(OH)2. Electrochemical tests showed that H-Ni(OH)2@CuS has the highest glucose sensing sensitivity (2738.57 μA mM−1 cm−2) and the widest linear range (0.01–6.64 mM), with a detection limit of 3.3 μM (LOD = 3σ/S) compared with those of other materials. The superior electrochemical performance of H-Ni(OH)2@CuS can be attributed to the unique advantages of the hollow structure and the synergistic effect among multi-components in the heterojunction. The H-Ni(OH)2@CuS based sensor also demonstrates reliable reproducibility, long-term stability, and excellent anti-interference capability. Furthermore, it shows acceptable accuracy in detecting actual human serum samples, indicating its important practical application value.