Facile synthesis of a silver nanoparticles/polypyrrole nanocomposite for non-enzymatic glucose determination

•New conductive nanocomposite based on polypyrrole and silver nanoparticles;•Low-cost, easy preparation of enzymeless electrochemical sensor for glucose detection;•Optimization of nanocomposite synthesis based on electrochemical response for glucose;•Promising analytical performance for glucose determination in human saliva samples.

The present work describes the synthesis of a new conductive nanocomposite based on polypyrrole (PPy) and silver nanoparticles (PPy-AgNP) based on a facile reverse microemulsion method and its application as a non-enzymatic electrochemical sensor for glucose detection. Focusing on the best sensor performance, all experimental parameters used in the synthesis of nanocomposite were optimized based on its electrochemical response for glucose. Characterization of the optimized material by FT-IR, cyclic voltammetry, and DRX measurements and TEM images showed good monodispersion of semispherical Ag nanoparticles capped by PPy structure, with size average of 12 ± 5 nm. Under the best analytical conditions, the proposed sensor exhibited glucose response in linear dynamic range of 25 to 2500 μmol L− 1, with limit of detection of 3.6 μmol L− 1. Recovery studies with human saliva samples varying from 99 to 105% revealed the accuracy and feasibility of a non-enzymatic electrochemical sensor for glucose determination by easy construction and low-cost.

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