Electrochemical Determination of Epinephrine in Pharmaceutical Preparation Using Laponite Clay-Modified Graphene Inkjet-Printed Electrode.

Epinephrine (EP, also called adrenaline) is a compound belonging to the catecholamine neurotransmitter family. It can cause neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, Huntington's disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. This work describes an amperometric sensor for the electroanalytical detection of EP by using an inkjet-printed graphene electrode (IPGE) that has been chemically modified by a thin layer of a laponite (La) clay mineral. The ion exchange properties and permeability of the chemically modified electrode (denoted La/IPGE) were evaluated using multi-sweep cyclic voltammetry, while its charge transfer resistance was determined by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. The results showed that La/IPGE exhibited higher sensitivity to EP compared to the bare IPGE. The developed sensor was directly applied for the determination of EP in aqueous solution using differential pulse voltammetry. Under optimized conditions, a linear calibration graph was obtained in the concentration range between 0.8 µM and 10 µM. The anodic peak current of EP was directly proportional to its concentration, leading to detection limits of 0.34 µM and 0.26 µM with bare IPGE and La/IPGE, respectively. The sensor was successfully applied for the determination of EP in pharmaceutical preparations. Recovery rates and the effects of interfering species on the detection of EP were evaluated to highlight the selectivity of the elaborated sensor.

Amino-Functionalized Laponite Clay Material as a Sensor Modifier for the Electrochemical Detection of Quercetin.

In this work, an electrode modified with an amino-functionalized clay mineral was used for the electrochemical analysis and quantification of quercetin (QCT). The resulting amine laponite (LaNH2) was used as modifier for a glassy carbon electrode (GCE). The organic-inorganic hybrid material was structurally characterized using X-ray diffraction, Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and CHN elemental analysis. The covalent grafting of the organosilane to the clay backbone was confirmed. The charge on the aminated laponite, both without and with the protonation of NH2 groups, was evaluated via cyclic voltammetry. On the protonated amine (LaNH3+)-modified GCE, the cyclic voltammograms for QCT showed two oxidation peaks and one reduction peak in the range of -0.2 V to 1.2 V in a phosphate buffer-ethanol mixture at pH 3. By using the differential pulse voltammetry (DPV), the modification showed an increase in the electrode performance and a strong pH dependence. The experimental conditions were optimized, with the results showing that the peak current intensity of the DPV increased linearly with the QCT concentration in the range from 2 × 10-7 M to 2 × 10-6 M, leading to a detection limit of 2.63 × 10-8 M (S/N 3). The sensor selectivity was also evaluated in the presence of interfering species. Finally, the proposed aminated organoclay-modified electrode was successfully applied for the detection of QCT in human urine. The accuracy of the results achieved with the sensor was evaluated by comparing the results obtained using UV-visible spectrometry.

Efficient Electrochemical Lead Detection by a Histidine-Grafted Metal-Organic Framework MOF-808 Electrode Material.

As the excessive presence of heavy metals in the environment significantly affects human health, it becomes necessary to develop efficient, selective, and sensitive methods for their detection. In this study, a novel electrochemical sensor for the detection of Pb2+ ions is described. The proposed sensor is based on a glassy carbon electrode (GCE) modified by a thin film of histidine-grafted metal-organic framework (MOF-808-His). The MOF-808 was obtained solvothermally, and then postsynthetically modified by substituting the coordinated acetate with histidinate. By electrochemistry, the MOF-808-His-modified GCE demonstrated high charge selectivity, while electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and kinetic studies gave a lower charge transfer resistance (4196 Ω) and a better standard heterogeneous electron transfer rate constant (1.80 × 10-5 cm s-1) on MOF-808-modified GCE. These results indicated a swift and direct electron transfer rate from [Fe(CN)6]3-/4- to the electrode surface. Using square wave anodic stripping voltammetry (SWASV), the rapid and highly sensitive determination of Pb2+ was achieved on MOF-808-His-modified GCE. By optimizing the accumulation-detection parameters including pH of the detection medium, deposition time and potential, and concentration, a remarkable limit of detection (LoD, based on a signal-to-noise ratio of 3) of (1.12 × 10-10 ± 0.10 × 10-10) mol L-1 was obtained, with a sensitivity of (9.6 ± 0.1) µA L µmol-1. After interference and stability studies, the MOF-808-His-modified GCE was applied to the detection of Pb2+ in a tap water sample with a concentration of 10 µmol L-1 Pb2+.

Fabrication of an Organofunctionalized Talc-like Magnesium Phyllosilicate for the Electrochemical Sensing of Lead Ions in Water Samples.

A talc-like magnesium phyllosilicate functionalized with amine groups (TalcNH2), useful as sensor material in voltammetry stripping analysis, was synthesized by a sol-gel-based processing method. The characterizations of the resulting synthetic organoclay by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction, N2 sorption isotherms (BET method), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), CHN elemental analysis and UV-Vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (UV-Vis-DRS) demonstrated the effectiveness of the process used for grafting of amine functionality in the interlamellar clay. The results indicate the presence of organic moieties covalently bonded to the inorganic lattice of talc-like magnesium phyllosilicate silicon sheet, with interlayer distances of 1568.4 pm. In an effort to use a talc-like material as an electrode material without the addition of a dispersing agent and/or molecular glue, the TalcNH2 material was successfully dispersed in distilled water in contrast to natural talc. Then, it was used to modify a glassy carbon electrode (GCE) by drop coating. The characterization of the resulting modified electrode by cyclic voltammetry (CV) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) revealed its charge selectivity ability. In addition, EIS results showed low charge transfer resistance (0.32 Ω) during the electro-oxidation of [Fe(CN)6]3-. Kinetics studies were also performed by EIS, which revealed that the standard heterogeneous electron transfer rate constant was (0.019 ± 0.001) cm.s-1, indicating a fast direct electron transfer rate of [Fe(CN)6]3- to the electrode. Using anodic adsorptive stripping differential pulse voltammetry (DPV), fast and highly sensitive determination of Pb(II) ions was achieved. The peak current of Pb2+ ions on TalcNH2/GCE was about three-fold more important than that obtained on bare GCE. The calculated detection and quantification limits were respectively 7.45 × 10-8 M (S/N = 3) and 24.84 × 10-8 M (S/N 10), for the determination of Pb2+ under optimized conditions. The method was successfully used to tap water with satisfactory results. The results highlight the efficient chelation of Pb2+ ions by the grafted NH2 groups and the potential of talc-like amino-functionalized magnesium phyllosilicate for application in electrochemical sensors.

Lignocellulosic-Based Materials from Bean and Pistachio Pod Wastes for Dye-Contaminated Water Treatment: Optimization and Modeling of Indigo Carmine Sorption.

In this work, biomass lignocellulosic materials extracted via chemical and physical treatments from bean and pistachio pod waste were used for the optimized elimination of Indigo Carmine (IC) from aqueous medium, using a design of experiments methodology. The physicochemical properties of the studied materials (raw and treated counterparts) used for the sorption of IC were investigated by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) coupled with EDX, and thermal analysis. Key variables influencing the adsorption of IC, namely the initial IC concentration, the pH of the solution, the stirring time and the mass of adsorbents, were optimized by the central composite design (CCD) with three center points, the measured response being the amount of IC adsorbed. The optimal conditions obtained from the statistical analysis for the removal of IC were as follows: maximum adsorbed amounts of IC: 1.81 mg/g, 2.05 mg/g, 3.56 mg/g; 7.42 mg/g, 8.95 mg/g, 15.35 mg/g, for raw bean pods (RBS), BST1 and BST2 (bean pods chemically treated), and for raw pistachio pods (RPS), PST1 and PST2 (pistachio pods chemically treated), respectively. The pseudo-second-order nonlinear kinetics model well described the IC adsorption kinetics for RBS, BST1 and BST2, while the Elovich model was properly fitted by RPS, PST1, and PST2 biomaterials data. The Freundlich isotherm best described the shrinkage of IC on different sorbents. The good correlation of the experimental data of the IC with respect to the Freundlich isotherm indicated a multilayer adsorption with heterogeneous adsorption sites and different energies. The interest of this work consisted in developing analytical methods for the treatment of water polluted by dyes by using biosorbents, local biological materials widely available and inexpensive. The results collected in this work highlighted the interesting structural, morphological, and physico-chemical properties of the agro-waste used in the study, which properties allowed an important fixation of the target dye in solution. The research showed that the agro-waste used in the study are possible precursors to locally manufacture adsorbents at low cost, thus allowing the efficient removal of waste and dyes in liquid effluents.