Development of modified graphite electrodes with nanoparticles and their application in the quantification of sucrose

BACKGROUND Developing fast and reliable methods with little sample preparation has become increasingly important for process monitoring and control. Electrochemical methods stand out for their low cost and instrumental simplicity. Furthermore, electrodes with nanoparticles can improve the method's sensitivity and specificity. This study developed carbon paste electrodes modified with nanoparticles of copper and iron. In addition, cyclic voltammetry was performed using a low-cost potentiostat designed for a Raspberry Pi single-board computer. As a proof of concept, the constructed electrodes were tested with ferrocyanide and applied to quantify sucrose, and their performance was compared to that of the glassy carbon electrode. RESULTS The nanoparticles were successfully synthesized, as confirmed by morphology and physicochemical characterization. Based on the adjusted R-2, the electrode made with the addition of copper oxide nanoparticles has a similar performance to the commercial glassy carbon electrode. All electrodes' root mean square error (RMSE) values were approximately 10(-4) mol L-1. The lowest values for the inverse of the analytical sensitivity for sucrose were obtained for the unmodified carbon paste electrode (9.54 x 10(-6) mol L-1) and copper oxide nanoparticles electrode (5.30 x 10(-6) mol L-1). These electrodes also had the lowest limits of detection (10(-5) mol L-1) and, for the limit of quantification, all electrodes had similar values (10(-2) mol L-1). CONCLUSION In general, superior performance of carbon paste electrodes was observed concerning the commercial glassy carbon electrodes. Compared to previous studies, the developed electrodes showed good sensitivity and the low cost of the electrochemical system stands out as the main advantage. (c) 2022 Society of Chemical Industry (SCI).

Automated summary

This study developed carbon paste electrodes modified with nanoparticles of copper and iron, which showed superior performance compared to commercial glassy carbon electrodes. The low cost of the electrochemical system is highlighted as the main advantage.