Preferential deposition of gold and platinum atom on palladium nanocube as catalysts for oxidizing glucose in the phosphate-buffered solution.

[Display omitted] • Au and Pt atoms are preferentially deposited onto (1 0 0) and (1 1 1) planes of Pd NCs. • Formed conformal Pd/Au NCs and concave Pd/Pt NCs are used for catalyzing neutral GORs. • EQCM are employed for the in-situ measnuremt of GOR kinetics. • Pd/Pt CNC with Pt(2 1 0) plane has a remarkable activity for the sequential GOR. • Pd/Au NC shows a wide linear ranage for sensing glucose in the transisent GOR. Core-shell structures can improve the performance of electrocatalysts in fuel cells and biosensors owing to the tunable electron density of the shell metal by the core metal. In this study, Au and Pt atoms are preferentially deposited onto the (1 0 0) and (1 1 1) planes of the basal and truncated surfaces of Pd nanocubes (NCs), thus forming conformal Pd/Au NCs and concave Pd/Pt NCs (Pd/Pt CNCs), respectively. Furthermore, the activities and performances of these two core–shell NCs as catalysts in the sequential and transient catalysis of the d -glucose oxidation reaction (GOR) in the phosphate-buffered solution are studied. In the sequential catalysis in situ, an electrochemical quartz crystal microbalance is used. The Pd/Pt CNC with Pt-rich corners and the (2 1 0) plane exhibits remarkable specific activity (S A1 , 7.26 × 10–8 mol·cm−2) for the amount of bonded d -glucose per electrochemical active surface area (ECSA). Simultaneously, the catalyst has a significant specific activity (S A2 , 1.2 × 10–7 mol·cm−2) for the number of moles of released electrons involved in the GOR. In the transient GOR catalysis, the Pd/Au NC catalyst with Au (1 0 0) exhibits high sensitivity (S ECSA , 6.28 μA·mM−1·cm−2) for the present of d -glucose per ECSA in the wide linear range (0.25–14 mM). Furthermore, the Pd/Au NC exhibits its potential for high recoveries (99.23–100.14 %) and low relative standard deviation (≤1.08 %) in real sample tests for serum samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]