Novel construction of carbon nanofiber/CuCrO(2) composite for selective determination of 4-nitrophenol in environmental samples and for supercapacitor application

A simple hydrothermal process has been used to prepare a carbon nanofiber/copper chromium dioxide (CNF/CuCrO(2)) composite for the selective detection of 4-nitrophenol (4-NP) and supercapacitor applications. The electrochemical sensor was developed with a glassy carbon electrode (GCE) modified with the CNF/CuCrO(2) composite by the drop-casting method. The structural formation of the prepared materials was confirmed by infrared spectroscopy, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and transmission electron microscopy. To investigate the electrochemical efficiency of the electrode, various electroanalytical techniques, namely, differential pulse voltammetry (DPV), cyclic voltammetry (CV) and galvanostatic charge–discharge tests, were employed. The GCE/CNF/CuCrO(2) modified electrode exhibited excellent electrocatalytic behavior for the detection of 4-NP under optimized conditions with a low detection limit (0.022 μM), long linear response range of 0.1–150 μM, and high sensitivity (20.02 μA μM(−1) cm(−2)). The modified electrode was used for the detection of 4-NP in real samples with satisfactory results. In addition, the GCE/CNF/CuCrO(2) electrode has advantages such as stability, reproducibility, repeatability, reliability, low cost, and practical application. The CNF/CuCrO(2) composite coated Ni-foam electrodes also exhibited excellent supercapacitor efficiency, with a high specific capacitance of up to 159 F g(−1) at a current density of 5 A g(−1) and outstanding cycling stability. Hence, the CNF/CuCrO(2) composite is a suitable material for 4-NP sensors and energy storage applications.