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Hydrophobic ionic liquid-modified graphene via fluid-dynamic process for ion-to-electron transducers for all-solid-state potentiometric sensors

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Abstract

Owing to the great demand for portable and wearable chemical sensors, the development of all-solid-state potentiometric ion sensors is highly desirable considering their simplicity and stability. However, most ion sensors are challenged by the penetration of water and gas molecules into ion-selective membranes, causing unstable and undesirable sensing performances. In this study, a hydrophobic ionic liquid-modified graphene (Gr) sheet was prepared using a fluid dynamics-induced exfoliation and functionalization process. The high hydrophobicity and electrical double-layer capacitance of Gr make it a potential solid-state ion-to-electron transducer for the development of potentiometric sodium-ion (Na+) sensors. The as-prepared Na+ sensors effectively prevented the formation of the water layer and penetration of gas species, resulting in stable and high sensing performances. The Na+ sensors showed a Nernstian sensitivity of 58.11 mV/[Na+] with a low relative standard deviation (0.46), fast response time (5.1 s), good selectivity (K < 10−4), and good durability. Furthermore, the Na+ sensor demonstrated its feasibility in practical applications by measuring accurate and reliable ion concentrations of artificial human sweat and tear samples, comparable to a commercial ion meter.

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The datasets used and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) Grant funded by the Ministry of Science and ICT (No. 2021R1A2C1009926); the Technology Innovation Program (or Industrial Strategic Technology Development Program) (20015577) funded by the Ministry of Trade, Industry & Energy (MOTIE, Korea); and the Nanomedical Devices Development Project of NNFC in 2023.

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  1. Eun Seop Yoon and Hong Jun Park contributed to this work equally.

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  1. Department of Energy Resources and Chemical Engineering, Kangwon National University, Samcheok, 25913, Republic of Korea

    Eun Seop Yoon, Hong Jun Park, Jo Hee Yoon & Bong Gill Choi

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  1. Eun Seop Yoon
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Correspondence to Bong Gill Choi.

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Yoon, E.S., Park, H.J., Yoon, J.H. et al. Hydrophobic ionic liquid-modified graphene via fluid-dynamic process for ion-to-electron transducers for all-solid-state potentiometric sensors. Carbon Lett. 33, 1561–1569 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42823-023-00521-3

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