Two-dimensional ytterbium oxide nanodisks based biosensor for selective detection of urea

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Nanotechnology
• Biosensors

Background:

• Two-dimensional (2D) nanomaterials offer unique properties for sensor applications.
• Ytterbium oxide (Yb2O3) is a promising material for electrochemical sensing.
• Development of sensitive and selective urea biosensors is crucial for environmental monitoring.

Purpose of the Study:

• To synthesize 2D rectangular Yb2O3 nanodisks using a facile hydrothermal method.
• To fabricate and characterize a novel urea biosensor based on Yb2O3 nanodisks.
• To evaluate the performance of the Yb2O3-based urea biosensor for urea detection.

Main Methods:

• Hydrothermal synthesis of 2D Yb2O3 nanodisks.
• Characterization using various analytical techniques (structural, morphological, compositional, etc.).
• Fabrication of a urea biosensor by modifying glassy carbon electrodes (GCE) with Yb2O3, urease, and Nafion.

Main Results:

• Well-defined 2D rectangular Yb2O3 nanodisks/sheet-like morphologies were synthesized.
• The fabricated biosensor exhibited high sensitivity (124.84 μA mM⁻¹ cm⁻²), a wide linear range (0.05–19 mM), and a low detection limit (~2 μM).
• The biosensor demonstrated fast response time (~3s), good selectivity, long-term stability, reproducibility, and repeatability, with satisfactory recovery in real water samples.

Conclusions:

• The facile hydrothermal method is effective for synthesizing 2D Yb2O3 nanodisks.
• The Yb2O3-modified GCE serves as a potent platform for developing a highly sensitive and stable urea biosensor.
• The developed biosensor shows significant potential for practical urea detection in environmental samples.