Ni-doped molybdenum disulfide nanoparticles anchored on reduced graphene oxide as novel electroactive material for a non-enzymatic glucose sensor

•Ni-MoS2/rGO composite was successfully fabricated by a simple strategy.•The proportions of Mo and Ni in Ni-MoS2/rGO composite were optimized here.•This material shows improved electrocatalytic activity for glucose oxidation.•A wide linear range, good selectivity and ideal stability.•Ni-MoS2/rGO composite can be used to detect glucose in human blood serum.

In the present paper, Ni-doped molybdenum disulfide nanoparticles/reduced graphene oxide (Ni-MoS2/rGO) composites have been synthesized with a facile, effective and simple strategy by using a deposition-precipitation method and followed calcining under N2 flow. The as-prepared composites were characterized via X-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman spectrum, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and electrochemical methods. The results reveal that the Ni-MoS2/rGO composite could own highly exposed catalytic sites, favorable conductivity, and excellent electron transport rates due to the large specific surface area and electrical conduction efficiency of rGO, as supporter. It is precisely because of these advantages that result in the excellent electrocatalytic oxidation performance of the Ni-MoS2/rGO composite to glucose. Subsequently, electrochemical measurements indicate that the optimized Ni-MoS2/rGO catalyst processed a rapid response time within 2 s, wide linear range of 0.005-8.2 mM, good reproducibility and ideal stability. In addition, the results of kinetic studies show that this modified electrode possesses large diffusion coefficient (D = 1.83 × 10−3 cm2 s−1) and catalytic rate constants (Kcat = 6.26 × 105 cm3 mol−1 s−1). Above all, the Ni-MoS2/rGO composites appear to be a promising catalyst for non-enzymatic glucose sensor.

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