Hydrotalcite-supported gold nanoparticle catalysts as a low temperature cataluminescence sensing platform

• LDH-supported gold nanoparticles acted as novel catalysts for CTL reactions.
• A low-temperature CTL method for acetaldehyde was developed using the fabricated catalysts.
• The synergy effects between gold nanoparticles and LDHs were responsible for high CTL.
• The fabricated CTL sensor was validated for sensing acetaldehyde in fruit beverages.

Development of methods allowing cataluminescence at low temperatures is a particular scientific challenge. Low temperature-induced cataluminescence is usually performed by plasma-assisted catalytic oxidation on nanomaterials. High dispersed gold nanoparticles deposited on certain support could exhibit superior catalytic activities toward a series of reactions at low temperatures. There is apparently no good reason to disregard low temperature-induced cataluminescence on the surface of gold nanoparticle-support nanocomposites. Herein, layered double hydroxides (LDH)-supported gold nanoparticles were prepared using a colloid deposition method. Such the LDH-supported gold nanoparticle composite exhibits a remarkable cataluminescence response toward a series of organic compounds at high temperature (210 °C). Only acetaldehyde among the all tested organic compounds emerge an obvious cataluminescence signal on the surface of the LDH-supported gold nanoparticles at low temperature (105 °C). The synergy effects between gold nanoparticles and LDHs seem to play an important role in the acceleration of the rate-determining step at low temperatures. Therefore, the fabricated low-temperature cataluminescence sensor is validated for the analysis of acetaldehyde in fruit beverages with the minimized interferences. In principle, this work could be extended to other analytes by fabricating different nanoparticle-support nanocomposites.

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