Metal–organic framework aerogel synthesized via facile and assembly approach as electrochemical sensor for nitrite detection

The development of three-dimensional (3D) nanostructured electrode materials has proved to be an effective approach to enhance the electrochemical activity and detection sensitivity of nanocatalysts. In this work, we have developed a type of advanced electrochemical sensor based on the metal–organic framework aerogel by using corresponding Ni sheets and trimesic acid as precursors, and investigated its practical applications in sensitive nitrite detection. 3D MOF aerogels possess large surface areas and rich metal active sites, which is beneficial for improving their catalytic activities towards nitrite detection. The perpared Ni-MOF aerogel has high sensitivity of 261.3 µA cm−2 mM−1, wide linear range (5 µM–1.52 mM), and low limit value of 0.5 μM, as well as excellent selectivity, reproducibility, and stability, and can be applied to detect nitrite in real samples.