A novel hydrogen peroxide sensor based on electrodeposited copper/cuprous oxide nanocomposites.

In this work, copper/cuprous oxide (Cu/CuO) nanocomposites were electrodeposited on a fluorine doped tin oxide (FTO) glass substrate for sensitive determination of hydrogen peroxide (HO). The Cu/CuO nanocomposites were synthesized on FTO at a constant current density of -0.4 mA cm in 0.3 M CuSO (pH 9.5) under magnetic agitation. The composition and morphology of Cu/CuO nanocomposites were characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Taking advantage of the synergistic effects of Cu and CuO, the fabricated Cu/CuO/FTO electrode showed excellent electrocatalytic activity towards the oxidation of HO. The electrocatalytic performance of Cu/CuO/FTO was evaluated by linear sweep voltammetry and amperometry. Under optimized conditions, the developed sensor exhibited a wide linear range of 0.2-2000 μM for the determination of HO with a detection limit of 0.04 μM (S/N = 3). In addition, the proposed HO sensor was successfully applied for the determination of HO in milk samples, indicating that the electrodeposited Cu/CuO nanocomposites are promising nanomaterials for electrochemical sensors.