Hybridized Tungsten Oxide Nanostructures for Food Quality Assessment: Fabrication and Performance Evaluation

Tungsten oxide based micro and nanosized structures possess good capacitance as well as enhanced rate capability. Such properties are useful in various applications including electrochemical supercapacitors. Apart from supercapacitance, WO₃ and their 2D integrated structures have been modified using different methods to widen their range of the utility. Modification using layer coating, functionalization with other nanomaterial or molecules are methods that can be used to improve the core structure of WO₃. But such modifications often alter electrochemical performance. The effects and outcomes of such modifications incorporated in WO₃ structures were studied using electrochemical methods, sensing behavior, and morphological examination. One goal for such modifications was to improve robustness of the WO₃ structures apart from any change in supercapacitance performance. After detailed electrochemical analyses of WO₃ structures, a preliminary study was performed regarding the feasibility of the WO₃ based sensors for food safety applications based on electrochemical detection of hazardous dyes in food. Preliminary results obtained after various electrochemical tests including pulsed voltammetry, cyclic voltammetry, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy suggest the viability of WO₃ structures for food safety applications.