Ultrasensitive binder-free glucose sensors based on the pyrolysis of in situ grown Cu MOF

A non-enzymatic glucose sensor based on carbon/Cu composite materials was developed by the in-situ growth and subsequent pyrolysis of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) on Cu foam. After pyrolysis, SEM, HRTEM and STEM-EELS were employed to clarify the hierarchical Cu@porous carbon electrode. It is found that the Cu nanoparticles are uniformly embedded in the carbon matrix, attached on the carbon layer closely. The electrocatalytic activity of the Cu@porous carbon matrix electrode for glucose sensing was explored by cyclic voltammetry (CV) and chronoamperometry. The resulting Cu@porous carbon matrix electrode displays ultrahigh sensitivity (10.1 mA cm⁻² mM⁻¹), low detection limit (<1 μM), short response time (less than 2 s) and good stability, indicating that the developed electrode is a promising candidate material for glucose sensors.