{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,6]],"date-time":"2026-07-06T20:01:58Z","timestamp":1783368118278,"version":"3.54.6"},"reference-count":42,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"14","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2024,7,11]],"date-time":"2024-07-11T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1720656000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"MUR-PNRR project SAMOTHRACE","award":["ECS00000022"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["ECS00000022"]}]},{"name":"MUR-PNRR project SAMOTHRACE","award":["101006941"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["101006941"]}]},{"name":"MUR-PNRR project SAMOTHRACE","award":["2929\/5S"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2929\/5S"]}]},{"name":"MUR-PNRR project SAMOTHRACE","award":["2510\/2019"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2510\/2019"]}]},{"name":"European Union\u2019s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Programme","award":["ECS00000022"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["ECS00000022"]}]},{"name":"European Union\u2019s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Programme","award":["101006941"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["101006941"]}]},{"name":"European Union\u2019s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Programme","award":["2929\/5S"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2929\/5S"]}]},{"name":"European Union\u2019s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Programme","award":["2510\/2019"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2510\/2019"]}]},{"name":"Italian Infrastructure Beyond-Nano","award":["ECS00000022"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["ECS00000022"]}]},{"name":"Italian Infrastructure Beyond-Nano","award":["101006941"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["101006941"]}]},{"name":"Italian Infrastructure Beyond-Nano","award":["2929\/5S"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2929\/5S"]}]},{"name":"Italian Infrastructure Beyond-Nano","award":["2510\/2019"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2510\/2019"]}]},{"name":"Italian Ministry of University and Research","award":["ECS00000022"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["ECS00000022"]}]},{"name":"Italian Ministry of University and Research","award":["101006941"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["101006941"]}]},{"name":"Italian Ministry of University and Research","award":["2929\/5S"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2929\/5S"]}]},{"name":"Italian Ministry of University and Research","award":["2510\/2019"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2510\/2019"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Sensors"],"abstract":"<jats:p>The progressive increase in nitrate\u2019s (NO3\u2212) presence in surface and groundwater enhances environmental and human health risks. The aim of this work is the fabrication and characterization of sensitive, real-time, low-cost, and portable amperometric sensors for low NO3\u2212 concentration detection in water. Copper (Cu) micro-flowers were electrodeposited on top of carbon screen-printed electrodes (SPCEs) via cyclic voltammetry (with voltage ranging from \u22121.0 V to 0.0 V at a scan rate of 0.1 V s\u22121). The obtained sensors exhibited a high catalytic activity toward the electro-reduction in NO3\u2212, with a sensitivity of 44.71 \u03bcA\/mM. They had a limit of detection of 0.87 \u00b5M and a good dynamic linear concentration range from 0.05 to 3 mM. The results were compared to spectrophotometric analysis. In addition, the devices exhibited good stability and a maximum standard deviation (RSD) of 5% after ten measurements; reproducibility, with a maximum RSD of 4%; and repeatability after 10 measurements with the RSD at only 5.63%.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/s24144501","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2024,7,11]],"date-time":"2024-07-11T15:59:48Z","timestamp":1720713588000},"page":"4501","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":13,"title":["Copper Micro-Flowers for Electrocatalytic Sensing of Nitrate Ions in Water"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"24","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-7884-8648","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Roberta","family":"Farina","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"IMM\u2013CNR, Strada VIII Z.I., 5, 95121 Catania, Italy"},{"name":"Dipartimento di Scienze Chimiche, Universit\u00e0 Degli Studi di Catania, Viale A. Doria 6, 95125 Catania, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-5655-5457","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Giuseppe","family":"D\u2019Arrigo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"IMM\u2013CNR, Strada VIII Z.I., 5, 95121 Catania, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-4103-6208","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Alessandra","family":"Alberti","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"IMM\u2013CNR, Strada VIII Z.I., 5, 95121 Catania, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-6371-6714","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Silvia","family":"Scalese","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"IMM\u2013CNR, Strada VIII Z.I., 5, 95121 Catania, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Giuseppe E.","family":"Capuano","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"IMM\u2013CNR, Strada VIII Z.I., 5, 95121 Catania, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0008-2704-3701","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Domenico","family":"Corso","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"IMM\u2013CNR, Strada VIII Z.I., 5, 95121 Catania, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Giuseppe A.","family":"Screpis","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Dipartimento di Scienze Mediche, Chirurgiche e Tecnologie Avanzate \u201cG.F. Ingrassia\u201d, Universit\u00e0 Degli Studi di Catania, Via S. Sofia 87, 95123 Catania, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-6119-0309","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Maria Anna","family":"Coniglio","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Dipartimento di Scienze Mediche, Chirurgiche e Tecnologie Avanzate \u201cG.F. Ingrassia\u201d, Universit\u00e0 Degli Studi di Catania, Via S. Sofia 87, 95123 Catania, Italy"},{"name":"IMM\u2013CNR, Strada VIII Z.I., 5, 95121 Catania, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-6106-8875","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Guglielmo G.","family":"Condorelli","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Dipartimento di Scienze Chimiche, Universit\u00e0 Degli Studi di Catania, Viale A. Doria 6, 95125 Catania, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-8844-8568","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Sebania","family":"Libertino","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"IMM\u2013CNR, Strada VIII Z.I., 5, 95121 Catania, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2024,7,11]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1","DOI":"10.1016\/S0065-2296(08)60226-8","article-title":"Nitrate and Ammonium Nutrition of Plants: Physiological and Molecular Perspectives","volume":"Volume 30","author":"Callow","year":"1999","journal-title":"Advances in Botanical Research"},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"153","DOI":"10.1016\/B978-0-12-407247-3.00003-2","article-title":"Chapter Three\u2014The Role of Nitrate in Human Health","volume":"Volume 119","author":"Sparks","year":"2013","journal-title":"Advances in Agronomy"},{"key":"ref_3","unstructured":"World Health Organization (2006). 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