Facile one-pot microwave-assisted synthesis of rod-like and hexagonal plate-like AgNP@Ni-BTC composites for a potential salivary glucose sensor

Abstract

Diabetes is a serious disease with a huge number of patients worldwide. Glucose levels in people with diabetes are above 6.6 mM in blood samples and 200 μM in saliva samples. Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) have outstanding properties for glucose sensors, such as a large surface area and being rich in active sites. In this research, a silver nanoparticle@Ni-BTC (AgNP@Ni-BTC) composite was synthesized through one-pot synthesis using a microwave at 130 °C for 1 hour at 200 W. The results showed that the 4%AgNP@Ni-BTC-modified carbon paste electrode obtained better sensor performance than Ni-BTC with a limit of detection (LoD) of 14.73 μM, a sensitivity of 6584.89 μA mM⁻¹ cm⁻², and a linear range of 10–1250 μM. The 4%AgNP@Ni-BTC-modified carbon paste electrode also had better stability than Ni-BTC and had good reproducibility. Glucose detection tests on salivary samples showed that the 4%AgNP@Ni-BTC-modified carbon paste electrode could be used to measure glucose levels in salivary samples.