ZIF-8 derived Ni(OH)2 hollow nanocages for non-enzymatic glucose electrochemical sensing

The rational design of efficient electrocatalysts with favorable electronic structures and geometries can significantly influence their analytical performance for non-enzymatic glucose detection. In this work, nickel hydroxide nanocages on nickel foam (Ni(OH)2 NCs/NF) were fabricated by an ion-assisted etching method using zinc-based imidazole zeolite framework (ZIF-8) as a structural template. Due to the hollow nanocage structure of Ni(OH)2 NCs/NF, more exposed active sites and larger void space were obtained. The prepared hollow Ni(OH)2 NCs were used as a working electrode for electrochemical sensing glucose with high electro-catalysis performance under alkaline conditions. Under the optimal conditions, the Ni(OH)2 NCs/NF presents a short response time (less than 3 s) and a wide linear range from 1 μM to 3.45 mM for glucose assay. A low detection of limit (LOD) of 0.1 μM (S/N = 3) and an excellent sensitivity of 7413 μA mM−1 cm−2 were obtained by the prepared non-enzymatic electrochemical glucose sensor. In addition, the constructed Ni(OH)2 NCs exhibits good long-term stability and high selectivity for glucose detection. The practicability of the proposed sensor was verified by detecting glucose in serum samples with satisfactory results.