Selectively Electrochemical Determination of Chloramphenicol in Aqueous Solution Using Molecularly Imprinted Polymer-Carbon Nanotubes-Gold Nanoparticles Modified Electrode

A novel electrochemical sensor for the detection of chloramphenicol (CAP) was developed by modifying carboxyl acid functionalized multiwall carbon nanotubes (c-MWNTs) doped with gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) with a molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) film on the surface of a glassy carbon electrode (MIP/c-MWNTs-AuNPs/GCE). The resulting electrode exhibited good performance for CAP detection based on the recognition capability of the imprinted film, as well as the specific surface area and electron transfer ability of c-MWNTs doped with AuNPs. A linear response to a concentration range of 0.1-100 mg L-1 (r2 = 0.9962) and a detection limit (with a signal to noise ratio of 3) of 0.024 mg L-1 CAP were achieved under optimized conditions. When penicillin-G (Pen-G), thiamphenicol (TAM) and p-nitrophenol (p-NP) were used as the interferents, the MIP/c-MWNTs-AuNPs/GCE sensor showed good selectivity and interference immunity, and the signal responses of Pen-G and TAM were 0.11% and 5.8% that of the response for CAP, respectively. The MIP/c-MWNTs-AuNPs/GCE electrode showed a pronounced electrochemical response to CAP, and as such constitutes a promising strategy for the electrochemical detection of CAP.