Fullerene-C60 sensor for ultra-high sensitive detection of bisphenol-A and its treatment by green technology

Endocrine disruptors (EDCs) are environmental pollutants that, once incorporated into an organism, affect the hormonal balance of humans and various species. Its presence in environment is of great importance in water quality related questions. The proposed method describes the development of an accurate, sensitive and selective sensor for the detection of bisphenol-A (BPA) and its treatment by green technology. A fullerene (C-60) fabricated electrochemical sensor was developed for the ultrasensitive detection of BPA. The homemade sensor was characterized by scanning electron microscopy, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and chronocoulometry. The influence of measuring parameters such as pH and C-60 loading on the analytical performance of the sensor was evaluated. Various kinetic parameters such as electron transfer number (n); charge transfer coefficient (alpha); electrode surface area (A) and diffusion coefficient (D) were also calculated. Under the optimal conditions, the oxidation peak current was linear over the concentration range of 74 nM to 0.23 mu M with the detection limit (LOD) of 3.7 nM. The fabricated sensor was successfully applied to the determination of BPA in wastewater samples and it has promising analytical applications for the direct determination of BPA at trace level. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.