Total antioxidant capacity (TAC) can be evaluated by detecting the content of antioxidants, such as ascorbic acid, based on the enzyme-mimetic activity of nanomaterials. Herein, we fabricated a 3D-V₂O₅/NC nanocomposite using a self-templating strategy, which achieved ultrafine particles (∼2.5 nm), a porous carbon layer, large specific surface area (152.4 m²/g), N-doping and heterogeneous structure. The strong catalytic activity of 3D-V₂O₅/NC resulted from the integrated effect between the ultrafine structure of V₂O₅ nanoparticles and the 3D porous nitrogen-doped carbon framework, effectively increasing the number of active sites. This nanozyme presented a higher catalytic activity than its components or precursors in the nanocomposite (e.g., VN/NC, NC, V₂O₅, and VO₂/g-C₃N₄). ROS scavenging experiments confirmed that the dual enzyme-like activity of 3D-V₂O₅/NC (catalase-like and oxidase-like) resulted from their co-participation of ‧O₂^-, h⁺ and ‧OH, among which ‧O₂^- played a crucial role in the catalytic color reaction. By virtue of the 3D-V₂O₅/NC nanoenzyme activity and TMB as a chromogenic substrate, the mixed system of 3D-V₂O₅/NC + TMB + H₂O₂ provided a low detection limit (0.03 μM) and suitable recovery (93.0-109.5%) for AA. Additionally, a smartphone-based colorimetric application was developed employing "Thing Identify" software to evaluate TAC in beverages. The colorimetric sensor and smartphone-detection platform provide a better or comparable analytical performance for TAC assessment in comparison to commercial ABTS test kits. The newly developed smartphone-based colorimetric platform presents several prominent advantageous, such as low cost, simple/rapid operation, and feasibility for outdoor use.

We fabricated a novel N,S-co-doped carbon/Co_1-xS nanocomposite (NSC/Co_1-xS) using a facile sol-gel approach, which featured a multiporous structure, abundant S vacancies and Co-S nanoparticles filling the carbon-layer pores. When the Co_1-xS nanoparticles were anchored onto the surface of N,S-co-doped carbon, a synergistic catalysis action occurred. The NSC/Co_1-xS nanocomposites possessed both peroxidase-like and oxidase-mimetic dual-enzyme activities, in which the oxidase-mimetic activity dominated. By scavenger capture tests, the nanozyme was demonstrated to catalyze H₂O₂ to produce h⁺, •OH and •O₂^-, among which the strongest and weakest signals were h⁺ and •OH, respectively. The multi-valence states of Co atoms in the NSC/Co_1-xS structure facilitated electronic transfer that enhanced redox reactions, thereby improving the resultant color reaction. Based on the NSC/Co_1-xS's enzyme-mimetic catalytic reaction, a visual colorimetric assay and Android "Thing Identify" application (app), installed on a smartphone, offered detection limits of 1.93 and 2.51 mg/dl, respectively, in human serum samples. The selectivity/interference experiments, using fortified macromolecules and metal ions, demonstrated that this sensor had high selectivity and low interference potential for cholesterol analysis. Compared to standard assay kits and previously reported visual detection, the Android smartphone-based assays provided higher accuracy (recoveries up to 93.6-104.1%), feasibility for trace-level detection, and more convenient on-site application for cholesterol assay due to the superior enzymatic activity of NSC/Co_1-xS. These compelling performance metrics lead us to posit that the NSC/Co_1-xS-based nanozymic sensor offers a promising methodology for several practical applications, such as point-of-care diagnosis and workplace health evaluations.

Herein, we fabricated a magnetic 3D nanocomposite based on Co,Ni-codoped and N-modified carbon nanotubes and reduced graphene (CoNi-N-CNTs/rGO). This nanomaterial possessed strong magnetism due to the presence of Co-Ni alloy, abundant defect sites owing to N doping, and a 3D multi-porous structure resulting from CNT in-situ growth on the graphene surface. Based on DFT calculations, H-bonding, hydrophobic and π-π conjugation were inferred to facilitate bisphenol adsorption by nanocomposites, among which π-π interactions provided the greatest adsorption contribution within a given N-doping type. By employing BPM as model compound, the adsorption energies (ΔEa) for π-π conjugation were −1.80, −1.59 and −2.08 eV for graphitic-N, pyridinic-N, and pyrrolic-N, respectively. This infers that pyrrolic-N sites form the strongest BP sorption bonds with the nanocomposite. The nanocomposites were utilized as an extractant in an effervescence tablet-assisted magnetic solid-phase microextraction (ET-MSPE) procedure that was optimized using Plackett-Burman design (PBD) and central composite design (CCD). Under optimized conditions, the ET-MSPE/HPLC-FLD method provided strong analytical performance for quantification of six BPs in juice with limits of detection of 0.06–0.20 μg/L, recoveries of 82.4–103.7 % and RSDs of 1.2–5.3 %. The particular novelty of this study lies in demonstrating the enhancement of adsorption/extraction efficiencies for BPs by nanocomposites resulting from N doping to generate the superior adsorption properties associated with the pyrrolic-N structure. These findings provide a theoretical foundation to inform the rational design of N-doped adsorbents/extractants based on a rigorus understanding of the molecular interactions occurring between carbon-based nanocomposites and BP analogues.