Copper nanoparticles entrapped in SWCNT-PPy nanocomposite on Pt electrode as NOx electrochemical sensor

A highly sensitive NOx sensor was designed and developed by electrochemical incorporation of copper nanoparticles (CuNP) on single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNT)-polypyrrole (PPy) nanocomposite modified Pt electrode. The modified electrodes were characterized by scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray analysis. Further, the electrochemical behavior of the CuNP-SWCNT-PPy-Pt electrode was investigated by cyclic voltammetry. It exhibited the characteristic CuNP reversible redox peaks at −0.15 V and −0.3 V vs. Ag/AgCl respectively. The electrocatalytic activity of the CuNP-SWCNT-PPy-Pt electrode towards NOx is four-fold than the CuNP-PPy-Pt electrode. These results clearly revealed that the SWCNT-PPy nanocomposite facilitated the electron transfer from CuNP to Pt electrode and provided an electrochemical approach for the determination of NOx. A linear dependence (r2 = 0.9946) on the NOx concentrations ranging from 0.7 to 2000 μM, with a sensitivity of 0.22 ± 0.002 μA μM−1 cm−2 and detection limit of 0.7 μM was observed for the CuNP-SWCNT-PPy-Pt electrode. In addition, the sensor exhibited good reproducibility and retained stability over a period of one month.