Supramolecular Immobilization of Laccase on Carbon Nanotube Electrodes Functionalized with (Methylpyrenylaminomethyl)anthraquinone for Direct Electron Reduction of Oxygen

An efficient way of immobilizing and wiring a large amount of laccase on non-covalently-functionalized multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) electrodes is reported. 1-(2-anthraquinonylaminomethyl)pyrene and 1-[bis(2-anthraquinonyl)aminomethyl]pyrene were synthesized and studied for their capability to non-covalently functionalize MWCNT electrodes and immobilize and orientate laccase on the nanostructured electrodes. This led to high-performance biocathodes for oxygen reduction by direct electron transfer with maximum current densities of (1 +/- 0.2)mAcm-2. The performance of the resulting bioelectrodes could be doubled simply by using the bis-anthraquinone compound. The bioelectrodes show excellent stability over weeks and can thus be envisioned in enzymatic biofuel cells.