Carbon cloth-supported flower-shaped NiCo2O4 microsphere for high-performance binder-free non-enzymatic glucose sensor

A novel non-enzymatic glucose sensor is developed by directly growing flower-shaped NiCo 2 O 4 microsphere on flexible carbon cloth (NCO/CC) through a one-step electro-deposition with subsequent mild heat treatment. Benefiting from the excellent conductivity between the three-dimensional (3D) structure of NiCo 2 O 4 and CC, as well as the synergic effect between the nickel and cobalt cations, the NCO/CC can not only offer more additional active sites, but also significantly enhance its electrocatalytic performance. Under the optimized conditions, the NCO/CC electrode reveals excellent activity with a broad linear detection range from 10 to 2000 μM, a high sensitivity of 5260 μA mM −1 cm −2 , and a low detection limit (LOD) of 0.2 μM, along with good repeatability and long-term stability. Furthermore, the NCO/CC was successfully utilized to detect glucose in actual beverage samples, showing competitive performance. The straightforward and practical method offers a novel approach to measuring glucose in real-world applications. Novelty statement 3D flower-shaped NiCo 2 O 4 microspheres growing on flexible carbon cloth (NCO/CC) were fabricated by a facile one-step electro-deposition with subsequent mild heat treatment. The fabricated NCO/CC electrode exhibits a wide linear detection range, high selectivity, good reproducibility, and stability towards the detection of glucose.