Chitosan nanocomposite fibers supported copper nanoparticles based perceptive sensor and active catalyst for nitrophenol in real water

In this report, copper nanoparticles templated at chitosan-coated graphene oxide (GO) nanocomposite fibers (Cu@CH+GO) were prepared via solution-based fiber formation followed by treatment with a metal salt solution and NaBH4 and utilized for the detection and catalytic reduction of 4-nitrophenol (4-NP). Cu@CH+GO exhibited a high sensitivity of 1.729 +/- 0.027 mu AmM-1 cm(-2) and a detection limit of 3.5mM toward 4-NP. In addition, high catalytic activity was observed for the reduction of 4-NP with an apparent rate constant of 1.310 +/- 0.093 min(-1) using 7 mg of Cu@CH+GO catalyst. Besides the good catalytic activities of Cu@CH+GO, it could be easily recovered by simply pulling the fiber from the reaction medium. Moreover, Cu@CH+GO catalyst was also examined in real samples and found to be efficient in the detection and reduction of 4-NP. This novel approach provides a new route for simultaneous detection and reduction of 4-NP and can be a time and cost-effective tool for environmental safety.