Amperometric detection of nitrate using Sn-CuxO nanocomposite

2021FEBEREC-STD-103

This thesis presents a comprehensive investigation into the structural, physical, and electrochemical characteristics of Cu_xO and Sn-doped Cu_xO nanocomposite thin films as catalysts for the amperometric detection of nitrate. Excessive Nitrate is harmful to human thus the motivation of this work. The unique electrochemical and electronic properties of Cu_xO (Cu₂O/CuO) gives it merit to be used in the development of electronic devices. The nanocomposite thin films were constructed by a simple chemical route, a two-step spin-coating method and calcination technologies. The study involves X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) for physical characterization.

The XRD analysis reveals the presence of cubic Cu₂O and monoclinic CuO phases in pristine Cu_xO, while Sn doping induces crystallographic changes. Doping with Sn led to an increase in the quantity of electron transfers, increasing from 1 to 2 when compared to undoped Cu_xO.

The electrochemical characterization, performed through cyclic voltammetry (CV), chronoamperometry (CA), and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) in alkaline electrolyte, evaluates the catalytic performance for nitrate detection.