Facile construction of hierarchically nanostructured Fe₃ O ₄ films and their electrocatalytic performance

In this paper, hierarchically nanostructured magnetite films were in situ constructed on pure iron substrates by a convenient solution process. The resulting magnetite film was characterized by scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, as well as transmission electron microscopy. The electrocatalytic performance of the nanostructured film was also tested, which showed both high sensitivity and selectivity for the detection of L-ascorbic acid (AA) in the presence of dopamine (DA). In addition, repeated measurements in consecutive months disclosed constant catalytic responses at optimum potential, indicating both the stability and selectivity of the hierarchically nanostructured magnetite electrode for determining AA from DA without any interference.