Electrospun porous CuFe2O4 nanotubes on nickel foam for nonenzymatic voltammetric determination of glucose and hydrogen peroxide

Highlights: • Highly porous CuFe₂O₄ nanotubes by electrospinning without any template or surfactant. • Enhancing non-enzymatic glucose sensing performance by tuning the morphology of CuFe₂O₄. • Enhancing non-enzymatic H₂O₂ sensing performance by controlling the morphology of CuFe₂O₄. The authors have prepared highly porous CuFe₂O₄ nanotubes by electrospinning without using a template, a shape-directing agent, or a surfactant. The CuFe₂O₄ nanotubes possess characteristic inter and outer surfaces, high porosity, excellent flexibility and good electrical conductivity. The large specific surface warrants the presence of many active sites and a good transmission of electrons. Deposited on a nickel foam electrode, the material displays high electrochemical activity, best measured at a typical voltage of 0.5 mV (vs Hg/HgO) in alkaline solution, towards glucose, with high sensitivity (1239 μA mM⁻¹ cm⁻²), over a wide linear range (20 μM–5 mM), and a low detection limit (0.22 μM). The sensor also responds to H₂O₂, best at a typical voltage of 0.5 mV (vs Hg/HgO) at alkaline solution, with a sensitivity of 219 μA mM⁻¹ cm⁻² and a 22 μM detection limit. The response to glucose is linear in the 500 μM to 25 mM concentration range.