Silica gel/gold nanoparticles/(NS)2 ligand nanoporous platform-modified ionic liquid carbon paste electrode for potentiometric ultratrace assessment of Ag(I)

A novel ionic liquid carbon paste electrode has been developed using sol–gel/Au nanoparticle (SGAN) involving (NS)2 compound of N,N′-di-(cyclopentadienecarbaldehyde)-1, 2-di (o-aminophenylthio) ethane (CCAE) as an appropriate neutral ion-carrier for ultrahigh-sensitive potentiometric determination of Ag(I). Colloidal gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) also well dispersed self-assembly into the 3-(mercaptopropyl)-trimethoxysilane (MPTS)-derived sol–gel network through Au–S covalent bond engendering continuous and super-conductive nanoporous three-dimensional array. The room-temperature ionic liquid, 1-n-butyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate (BMIM.PF6), was applied as a super-conductive pasting agent (binder). The SGAN/CCAE/IL-CPE exhibited a significantly enhanced sensitivity and preferential selectivity toward Ag(I) over a wide concentration range of 2.4 × 10−9 to 2.2 × 10−2 mol L−1 (R2 = 0.9996) with a lower limit of detection of 7.9 × 10−10 M and a Nernstian slope of 58.5 (±0.3) mV decade−1. The electrode has a short response time of ∼5 s and long-time durability of about 2 months without any considerable divergence in potentials. Moreover, the potentiometric examinations could be carried out within the wide pH range of 3.5–9.5. Eventually, the practical utility of the proposed Ag(I)-sensor was evaluated by volumetric titration of AgNO3 solution by sodium chloride and recovery of silver content in some real samples using flame atomic absorption spectroscopy as a confident reference.