Effective and rapid electrochemical detection of hydrazine by nanoporous gold

Electrochemical fabrication of nanoporous gold electrodes in a deep eutectic solvent for electrochemical detections

An electrochemical method was developed to fabricate nanoporous gold electrodes by alloying and dealloying Au–Zn alloy in ZnCl₂–urea deep eutectic solvent.

Pt-Bi decorated nanoporous gold for high performance direct glucose fuel cell

Binary PtBi decorated nanoporous gold (NPG-PtBi) electrocatalyst is specially designed and prepared for the anode in direct glucose fuel cells (DGFCs). By using electroless and electrochemical plating methods, a dense Pt layer and scattered Bi particles are sequentially coated on NPG. A simple DGFC with NPG-PtBi as anode and commercial Pt/C as cathode is constructed and operated to study the effect of operating temperatures and concentrations of glucose and NaOH. With an anode noble metal loading of only 0.45 mg cm^-2 (Au 0.3 mg and Pt 0.15 mg), an open circuit voltage (OCV) of 0.9 V is obtained with a maximum power density of 8 mW cm^-2. Furthermore, the maximum gravimetric power density of NPG-PtBi is 18 mW mg^-1, about 4.5 times higher than that of commercial Pt/C.

Electrochemical Characterization of Ultrathin Cross-Linked Metal Nanoparticle Films

Here we report the preparation, characterization, and electrochemical study of conductive, ultrathin films of cross-linked metal nanoparticles (NPs). Nanoporous films ranging from 40 to 200 nm in thickness composed of gold and platinum NPs of ∼5 nm were fabricated via a powerful layer-by-layer spin coating process. This process allows preparation of uniform NP films as large as 2 × 2 cm(2) with precise control over thickness, structure, and electrochemical and electrocatalytic properties. Gold, platinum, and bimetallic NP films were fabricated and characterized using cyclic voltammetry, scanning electron microscopy, and conductance measurements. Their electrocatalytic activity toward the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) was investigated. Our results show that the electrochemical activity of such NP films is initially hindered by the presence of dense thiolate cross-linking ligands. Both electrochemical cycling and oxygen plasma cleaning are effective means in restoring their electrochemical activity. Gold NP films have higher electric conductivity than platinum possibly due to more uniform film structure and closer particle-particle distance. The electrochemical and electrocatalytic performance of platinum NP films can be greatly enhanced by the incorporation of gold NPs. This work focuses on electrochemical characterization of cross-linked NP films and demonstrates several unique properties. These include quick and easy preparation, ultrathin and uniform film thickness, tunable structure and composition, and transferability to many other substrates.

Monodisperse AuCuSn trimetallic nanocube catalysts

Monodisperse trimetallic AuCuSn nanocubes are reported where Sn and Cu are inserted into the crystal lattice following co-precipitation protocols along with Au.

Copper nanoparticles decorated polyaniline–zeolite nanocomposite for the nanomolar simultaneous detection of hydrazine and phenylhydrazine

The high electrocatalytic activity of the CuNPs–PANI–Nano-ZSM-5 nanocomposite can be attributed to the synergistic contribution provided by the highly dispersed copper nanoparticles and conductive PANI film on high surface area Nano-ZSM-5.

Optimal hydrothermal synthesis, characterization, and sensor application of sulfur-doped γ-MnOOH microrods

We demonstrate the optimal hydrothermal synthesis of S-doped γ-MnOOH microrods for highly sensitive electrochemical detection of hydrazine.

Nanoporous Gold Electrodes and Their Applications in Analytical Chemistry

Nanoporous gold prepared by dealloying Au:Ag alloys has recently become an attractive material in the field of analytical chemistry. This conductive material has an open, 3D porous framework consisting of nanosized pores and ligaments with surface areas that are 10s to 100s of times larger than planar gold of an equivalent geometric area. The high surface area coupled with an open pore network makes nanoporous gold an ideal support for the development of chemical sensors. Important attributes include conductivity, high surface area, ease of preparation and modification, tunable pore size, and a bicontinuous open pore network. In this paper, the fabrication, characterization, and applications of nanoporous gold in chemical sensing are reviewed specifically as they relate to the development of immunosensors, enzyme-based biosensors, DNA sensors, Raman sensors, and small molecule sensors.

Direct N(2)H(4)/H(2)O(2) fuel cells powered by nanoporous gold leaves

Dealloyed nanoporous gold leaves (NPGLs) are found to exhibit high electrocatalytic properties toward both hydrazine (N₂H₄) oxidation and hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) reduction. This observation allows the implementation of a direct hydrazine-hydrogen peroxide fuel cell (DHHPFC) based on these novel porous membrane catalysts. The effects of fuel and oxidizer flow rate, concentration and cell temperature on the performance of DHHPFC are systematically investigated. With a loading of ~0.1 mg cm⁻² Au on each side, an open circuit voltage (OCV) of 1.2 V is obtained at 80°C with a maximum power density 195 mW cm⁻², which is 22 times higher than that of commercial Pt/C electrocatalyst at the same noble metal loading. NPGLs thus hold great potential as effective and stable electrocatalysts for DHHPFCs.

Nanoporous gold as a solid support for protein immobilization and development of an electrochemical immunoassay for prostate specific antigen and carcinoembryonic antigen

Nanoporous gold (NPG) was utilized as a support for immobilizing alkaline phosphatase (ALP) conjugated to monoclonal antibodies against either prostate specific antigen (PSA) or carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA). The antibody-ALP conjugates were coupled to self-assembled monolayers of lipoic acid and used in direct kinetic assays. Using the enzyme substrate p-aminophenylphosphate, the product p-aminophenol was detected by its oxidation near 0.1 V (vs. Ag|AgCl) using square wave voltammetry. The difference in peak current arising from oxidation of p-aminophenol before and after incubation with biomarker increased with biomarker concentration. The response to these two biomarkers was linear up to 10 ng mL^-1 for CEA and up to 30 ng mL^-1 for PSA. The effect of interference on the PSA assay was studied using bovine serum albumin (BSA) as a model albumin protein. The effect of interference from a serum matrix was examined for the PSA assay using newborn calf serum. A competitive version of the immunoassay using antigen immobilized onto the NPG surface was highly sensitive at lower antigen concentration. Estimates of the surface coverage of the antibody-ALP conjugates on the NPG surface are presented.