A highly sensitive flexible sensor based on the MXene/αFe2O3 composite structure applied for the simultaneous detection of glucose and uric acid.

Sensors based on inorganic nanomaterials for the detection of human body fluids show great potential in real-time detection and treatment of human health due to their advantages of small size and easy to wear. Nevertheless, most of the existing sensors have the disadvantage of detecting relatively simple substances and suffer from low sensitivity, which undermines their practical applicability in body fluids detection. In this study, based on the transition metal carbide (Ti 3 C 2 T x , MXene)/αFe 2 O 3 grid composite structure, a highly sensitive flexible sensor is proposed, which can realize accurate and simultaneous detection of glucose and uric acid (UA) concentration. The sensor exhibits outstanding durability, enabling it to withstand prolonged immersion in water and exposure to high flow velocities. More importantly, the sensor has extremely high sensitivity for both glucose (2.14 mA mM−1 cm−2, 5.5 times the mean value) and UA (2.56 μA μM−1 cm−2, 3.5 times the mean value). It also has the advantage of low detection limits (0.27 μM for glucose and 0.31 μM for UA) and a wide linear detection range (1 mM–40 mM for glucose and 10 μM–900 μM for UA) compared to existing sensors for body fluids detection. In addition, the sensor has excellent repeatability, long shelf life (over 40 days) and excellent immunity to interference (accurate detection of glucose and UA in the presence of multiple metal ions as well as organics in human body fluids). This study establishes the groundwork for developing a production-ready and highly sensitive blood detection sensor capable of real-time monitoring. [Display omitted] • Simultaneous detection of glucose and UA based on MXene/αFe 2 O 3 grid composite structure. • Affected by the αFe 2 O 3 nanostructure, the sensor has excellent sensitivity. • The sensitivity is 2.14 mA mM−1 cm−2 for glucose and 2.56 μA μM−1 cm−2 for UA. • Detection range is 1 mM–40 mM (glucose) and 10 μM–900 μM (UA). • The MXene/αFe 2 O 3 sensor demonstrates excellent durability and repeatability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]