Biomass-Derived Carbon-Based Electrodes for Electrochemical Sensing: A Review

Abstract

The diverse composition of biomass waste, with its varied chemical compounds of origin, holds substantial potential in developing low-cost carbon-based materials for electrochemical sensing applications across a wide range of compounds, including pharmaceuticals, dyes, and heavy metals. This review highlights the latest developments and explores the potential of these sustainable electrodes in electrochemical sensing. Using biomass sources, these electrodes offer a renewable and cost-effective route to fabricate carbon-based sensors. The carbonization process yields highly porous materials with large surface areas, providing a wide variety of functional groups and abundant active sites for analyte adsorption, thereby enhancing sensor sensitivity. The review classifies, summarizes, and analyses different treatments and synthesis of biomass-derived carbon materials from different sources, such as herbaceous, wood, animal and human wastes, and aquatic and industrial waste, used for the construction of electrochemical sensors over the last five years. Moreover, this review highlights various aspects including the source, synthesis parameters, strategies for improving their sensing activity, morphology, structure, and functional group contributions. Overall, this comprehensive review sheds light on the immense potential of biomass-derived carbon-based electrodes, encouraging further research to optimize their properties and advance their integration into practical electrochemical sensing devices.

Keywords: biomass waste; carbon-based electrode; circular economy; green synthesis; low-cost catalyst.

Figure 1

Main synthesis methods for preparing biomass-derived carbon materials for sensing applications.

Figure 2

Scheme of activated carbon production from wetland biomass with conventional H₃PO₄ activation [20].

Figure 3

(a) Schematic illustration of heteroatoms self-doped porous carbon derived from biomass sources; types of (b) nitrogen, (c) sulfur, and (d) phosphorous [23].

Figure 4

Schematic methodology for preparing the electrochemical sensor using kiwi peel [39].

Figure 5

(A) Cyclic voltammogram of different electrodes in a solution of 0.1 M KCl containing 5.0 mM Fe(CN)₆³⁻/⁴⁻; (B) cyclic voltammogram of bare glassy carbon electrode, CN-modified glassy carbon electrode, and phosphorous-doped nitrogenous porous carbon material modified glassy carbon electrode in 0.1 M phosphate buffer solution (pH 7.0) with 0.2 mΜ ascorbic acid, DA, and UA; (C) DPV phosphorous-doped nitrogenous porous carbon material-modified glassy carbon electrode, and bare glassy carbon electrode in 0.1 M phosphate buffer solution (pH 7.0) with 0.2 mΜ ascorbic acid, DA, and UA; (D) effect of pH value [52].

Figure 6

(a) Amperometric response of the carbon quantum dot-modified glassy carbon electrode towards sequential addition of hydrazine at 0.65 V vs. Ag/AgCl in 0.1 M phosphate buffer solution; (b) calibration curve representing the response of electrodes (N = 3) [65].

Figure 7

Selectivity study of glassy carbon electrode modified with gold nanoparticles/reduced graphene oxide with date-seed-derived biomass-derived activated carbon upon the injection of 100 µM 4-nitrophenol and five times (500 µM) higher concentrations of KCl, MgSO₄, Na₂SO₄, K₂CO₃, CaCl₂, CoNO₃, urea, oxalic acid (OA), galactose, glucose, sucrose, and fructose, and three times (300 µM) higher concentrations of ascorbic acid, and dopamine, and similar (100 µM) concentrations of uric acid, thiourea (TU), 3-nitrophenol (3-NP), nitrobenzene (NB), and 4-nitrotoluene (4-NT) interfering chemicals in 0.1 M phosphate buffer solution (pH = 7.0) at a working potential of −0.6 V [66].

Figure 8

Scanning electron microscope images (A–C) and transmission electron microscopy images (D–F) of LRPC-800, N&P/LRPC-800-1, and N&P/LRPC-800-2, respectively [95].

Figure 9

Schematic methodology for the determination of Vitamin C using a yellow membrane of chicken feet-derived waste [104].

Figure 10

(a) Cyclic voltammograms of 25 μM malachite green in 0.05 M H₂SO₄ on the ordered mesoporous carbon nanofiber arrays on glassy carbon (red line) and glassy carbon (black line), with the scan rate = 100 mVs⁻¹ and (b) Nyquist plots corresponding to the glassy carbon and ordered mesoporous carbon nanofiber arrays on glassy carbon surface in 5 mM Fe(CN)⁻³/⁻⁴ +0.1 M KCl [85].

Figure 11

Schematic methodology to electrochemical monitoring of Palbociclib–DNA interaction using human hair waste [105].

Figure 12

Determination of AC in 0.1 M phosphate buffer solution (pH = 7.4) using glassy carbon modified with the catalyst obtained with consecutive activations. (a) DPV plots and (b) corresponding linear calibration plots of the result. The range of concentration of acetaminophen was from 0.01 µM to 20 µM. The determination of acetaminophen in 0.1 M phosphate buffer solution (pH = 7.4) using glassy carbon modified with the catalyst obtained with consecutive activations with 100 µM of ascorbic acid and 1 µM of dopamine. (c) DPV plots and (d) corresponding linear calibration plots of the result. The range of concentration of AC was from 0.02 µM to 20 µM [16].

Figure 13

Differential pulse voltammograms recorded in 0.1 M acetic buffer pH 4.75 at the prepared catalyst for (a) 0.1 mM hydroquinone; (b) 0.025 mM catechol; (c) 0.1 mM gallic acid; (d) 0.1 mM resorcinol; (e) 0.1 mM vanillin; pulse amplitude 90 mV, pulse width 60 ms, and scan rate 30 mVs⁻¹ [109].