Voltammetric and electro-kinetic assessment of prucalopride at MnO2-rGO fabricated pencil graphite electrode

Development and design of rGO-based nanocomposite-modified carbon-based electrodes are necessary to enhance the selectivity and desired selectivity of the voltammetric sensors. In this work, a manganese dioxide-reduced graphene oxide (MnO₂-rGO) fabricated pencil graphite electrode is described for the detection of prucalopride (PRU), which is used to treat chronic idiopathic constipation. A simple cost effective hydrothermal method was used to synthesize the needle-shaped MnO₂. The MnO₂-rGO nanocomposite was characterized using XRD, SEM, and FTIR spectroscopy to examine its microstructure and morphology. The results revealed that MnO₂ needles are distributed on the flakes of the rGO, thereby enhancing the electro-catalytic activity of MnO₂-rGO/PGE. The electrochemical performance of the developed MnO₂-rGO/PGE was examined using CV, chronocoulometry, SWSV, and DPSV methods. The diffusion-controlled oxidation of the PRU at the MnO₂-rGO/PGE produces an irreversible peak in all the voltammograms which were used to calculate several electro-kinetic parameters like electron transfer coefficient (α = 0.598), diffusion coefficient (D_o = 1.62 × 10⁻⁵ cm²s⁻¹), surface coverage (Γ^o = 1.55 × 10⁻⁹ molcm⁻²), and effective surface area. Furthermore, advanced SWSV and DPSV methods are proposed for the accurate, selective, and sensitive detection of the PRU in pharmaceutical samples. The reported values of detection limit (LOD) for the proposed SWSV and DPSV methods are 20.39 μM and 14.53 μM, respectively, which make them eco-friendly and affordable alternative tools for the quantification of the PRU in pharmaceutical samples.