Electrocatalytic Glucose Sensing in Sports Beverages and Serum Using Mxene/ZnO Composite Material

Abstract

A new ZnO/MXene material was made using a simple hydrothermal method and heat treatment for measuring glucose without enzymes in sports drinks and human blood samples. The best ZnO/MXene-300 material, made at 150 °C and heated at 300 °C, had a large surface area of 152 m2/g, high current density of 1.12 mA/cm2, and low activation energy of 32.6 kJ/mol for glucose oxidation. The sensor could measure a wide range of glucose levels (0.01-12 mM) with a low detection limit (0.005 µM), worked well in the presence of other substances, remained stable (93.6% after 7 days), and gave consistent results (RSD of 3.2%). The material was tested by measuring glucose in sports drinks and blood samples, with measured values close to the actual values (96.4–104.5%) and high precision (RSDs of 2.8% and 3.8%). These results show that ZnO/MXene materials are promising for making sensitive and stable glucose sensors that don’t need enzymes.