Modulation of metal centers of MOF in-situ grown on lignin-derived carbon to enhance adsorption capacity and electrochemical sensing performance for bisphenol A

[Display omitted] •The bimetallic MOF has been in-situ grown on LPC-700 for the first time.•The adsorption mechanism of BPA on several MOF has been investigated by DFT.•The LPC-700@NiCo-MOF exhibits excellent electrocatalytic activity towards BPA.•The sensor achieves efficient catalysis and adsorption of BPA in actual samples. Metal-organic framework materials have unique advantages in providing active sites and shortening electron/proton transfer distances. Here, an efficient electrochemical sensing material LPC-700@NiCo-MOF has been obtained by in-situ growth of bimetallic NiCo-MOF on lignin-derived porous quasi-carbon nanosheets (LPC-700). Due to the electronic synergistic effect of bimetallic centers of NiCo-MOF, it has better electrochemical sensing performance for bisphenol A (BPA) than the monometallic MOF. The density of states and adsorption energies of monometallic and bimetallic MOF on BPA have been investigated by DFT theory, which further demonstrated that the bimetallic NiCo-MOF has better electrochemical performance and adsorption effect on BPA. The high-performance portable sensor based on LPC-700@NiCo-MOF has been able to quickly, sensitively and accurately detect BPA in water samples and food packaging. This strategy of metal-modulated MOF grown in-situ on conducting carbon-based materials to enhance electrochemical activity provides a method for application in electrochemical fields.