ISSN print edition: 0366-6352 ISSN electronic edition: 1336-9075 Registr. No.: MK SR 9/7 Published monthly

Rational designing of exfoliated flower like ZnO nanosheets having extensive peroxidase mimetic properties for strong colorimetric H₂O₂ sensing

Mohib Ullah, Jasgurpreet Singh Chohan, Prakash Kanjariya, Asha Rajiv, Aman Shankhyan, Helen Merina Albert, Alia Mushtaq, Vineet Tirth, Ali Algahtani, Li Zhengxin, Ruqia Nazir, and Muslim Khan

Henan key Laboratory of Superhard Abrasive and Grinding Equipment, Henan University of Technology, Zhengzhou, China

E-mail: mohib3086@gmail.com

Received: 1 March 2025  Accepted: 20 June 2025

Abstract:

The development of simple, cheap and fast analytical method for highly sensitive detection of H₂O₂ in living organism has still deemed as potential research topic and is extremely crucial and decisive. So, for this purpose, in the present study, we have mainly focused on to develop colorimetric sensing method based on three-dimensional (3D) exfoliated zinc-oxide (E-ZnO) nanosheet (NSs) like structure, exhibiting per-oxidase mimetic catalysis properties. The as-fabricated sensor (E-ZnO NSs) tends to catalyze the oxidization of colorless 3,3′, 5,5′-tetramethylbenzidine (TMB) with the assistance of hydrogen-peroxide (H₂O₂) and converted into colorful oxidized-TMB. This oxidizing-catalysis reaction will certainly lead to produce Ultra-Violet Visible peak (UV–Vis) at 652 nm and appearance of color variation (pink color), by strongly following Michaelis–Menten kinetic analysis. The as-synthesized sensor establishes a highly motivated colorimetric-response with wider-range of 0.001 to 0.700 μM, having lower detection-limit (LOD) of 0.11 ± 0.05 nM and quantitation-limit (LOQ) of 0.66 ± 0.05 nM. The colorimetric sensor has also manifested excellent selectivity, larger cycling stability (10 cycles) and ample long-term stability of (12 weeks). Further, the sensor also exhibits outstanding practicability response in real sample analysis (human-urine samples). All these impressive sensing properties are attributed to large hierarchical 3D exfoliated nanosheets (flower like) structure with better surface-area and surface exposed active sites. Thus, we conclude that our study establishes a well sensitive and selective colorimetric detection platform toward H₂O₂, which will pay a key role in future sensing applications.

Keywords: ZnO NSs; Colorimetric response; High sensitivity; Superb stability; Real sample analysis

Full paper is available at www.springerlink.com.

DOI: 10.1007/s11696-025-04200-7

Chemical Papers 79 (10) 6527–6542 (2025)