Differential Pulse Voltammetric Detection of Acetaminophen Using Nickel Phthalocyanine/CeO2-Modified ITO Electrodes

The present contribution reports a novel electrode based on an ITO substrate surface-modified with a nanofilm of nickel tetrasulfonated phthalocyanine (NiTsPc) with cerium oxide nanoparticles (CeO2) for the effective differential pulse voltammetric detection of acetaminophen, which is a contaminant of emerging concern (CEC). The optimized ITO/NiTsPc/CeO2 electrode responds linearly (r(2) > 0.99) to acetaminophen in the range of 0.4 to 11.2 mu M, with a limit of detection (S/N = 3) of 54.7 nM. This response is reproducible for fourteen consecutive runs (RSD = 10.97%) and insensitive to the presence of interfering CECs (amoxicillin, atenolol, caffeine, diclofenac, ethinyl estradiol, and ibuprofen) at the same concentration. The electrode can be used to detect acetaminophen in tap water, synthetic urine, and pharmaceutical tablets, in which it performs similarly to UV-Vis spectroscopy at a 95% confidence level.