A Self-Powered Enzymatic Glucose Sensor Utilizing Bimetallic Nanoparticle Composites Modified Pencil Graphite Electrodes as Cathode

Abstract

Enzymatic biofuel cells (EBFC) are promising sources of green energy owing to the benefits of using renewable biofuels, eco-friendly biocatalysts, and moderate operating conditions. In this study, a simple and effective EBFC was presented using an enzymatic composite material-based anode and a nonenzymatic bimetallic nanoparticle-based cathode, respectively. The anode was constructed from a glassy carbon electrode (GCE) modified with a multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) and ferrocene (Fc) as a conductive layer coupled with the enzyme glucose oxidase (GOx) as a sensitive detection layer for glucose. A chitosan layer was also applied to the electrode as a protective layer to complete the composite anode. On the other hand, the cathode consisted of a disposable pencil graphite electrode (PGE) modified with platinum-palladium bimetallic nanoparticles (Nps) which exhibit excellent conductivity and electron transfer rate for the oxygen reduction reaction. The EBFC consisting of MWCNT-Fc-GOx/GCE anode and Pt-PdNps/PGE cathode exhibits an open circuit potential of 285 mV and a maximum power density of 32.25 µW cm^− 2 under optimized conditions. The results show that the proposed EBFC is a promising candidate for detecting glucose while harvesting power from artificial serum samples.