Molecularly imprinted polyaniline-modified electrode for quantitative detection of acetaminophen

Abstract

In this work, a voltammetry sensor was prepared using the general molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) method based on polyaniline for detection of acetaminophen (ACT). The polyaniline molecularly imprinted polymer was made by electropolymerization of aniline in the presence of acetaminophen as a template using power supply, and then acetaminophen was separated from the polymer by solvent extraction method. Different concentrations of ACT were detected using cyclic voltammetry (CV) in water-ethanol solution, and a calibration curve with a limit of detection (LOD) and limit of quantification (LOQ) of 0.43 and 1.42 ppm, respectively, was reported along with a linear equation. The sensor showed a linear range between 5 and 40 ppm for acetaminophen detection. To investigate the selectivity of the reported sensor, a copper electrode was used to detect ACT and an ibuprofen solution was used as analyte for detection by the ACT-MIP sensor. Additionally, the nonimprinted polymer (NIP) did not show any significant peak in the presence of ACT. This sensor was able to detect acetaminophen dissolved in a real urine sample successfully. This novel sensor is prepared from polyaniline, which is a conductive polymer, and no other reinforcements are needed for the sensor's conductivity in the presence of template molecule, which in this paper is acetaminophen.