A novel synthesis of Ni3S2/NiO nanocomposites as sensing material: Design, generation mechanism and synergistic effect

The Ni3S2/NiO nanocomposites have been expectedly fabricated through in-situ pyrolysis of the SO42--confined Ni-MOF{[H2N(CH3)] [Ni-2(BDC) (SO4)F(H2O)]}. The inner SO42- avoids the extra addition of volatile sulfur source and discharges of the polluting sulfur dioxide. Further, the generation mechanisms of Ni3S2/NiO have been proposed by single crystal X-ray diffraction, theoretical analyses of Frontier Molecular Orbital, and the monitoring of by-products gas. The atomic migration and redistribution to electron should synergistically contribute to the successful generation of Ni3S2/NiO. The Ni3S2/NiO nanocomposites could accomplish the glucose sensing ranging from 0.1 x 10(-5) to 1.3 x 10(-5) M and the limit of detection (LOD) is estimated to be 1.6 x 10(-7) M, meeting the detection requirement glucose level on human serum. The synergistic effect in Ni3S2/NiO nanocomposites that NiO could accelerate the adsorption of H2O and the generation of oxidants, and Ni3S2 contributes more to the fast electron conduction should be responsible of the sensing improvement.