Enhanced Electrocatalytic Activity of Non-metal-Doped Transition Metal Oxides for an Electrochemical Detection of Furazolidone (vol 15, pg 313, 2022)

In this study, we report the synthesis of non-metal (N and S)-doped transition metal oxide (TMO) TiO2 (NST) nanocomposites for electrochemical detection and visible-light-driven photocatalysis of the antibiotic drug furazolidone (FRZ). The nanocomposites were synthesized by hydrothermal process and characterized with a wide range of analytical techniques. Electrodes decorated with the nanocomposites (NST) exhibited high sensitivity in detection of FRZ, ~ 16 μA μM cm−1, and a limit of detection of 0.02350 μM. The sensing platform showed a linear dynamic range of 2 to 100 μM with a regression value of 0.9992, so it can be used to inspect real samples. The nanocomposites exhibited high photocatalytic activity against FRZ, achieving degradation efficiency of 95% in 140 min. Therefore, the non-metal doped TiO2 nanocomposites have electrochemical and photocatalytic abilities superior to those of typical noble metal-based sensors and photocatalysis. Graphical abstract: [Figure not available: see fulltext.] © 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.