Electrochemical detection of phenolic nanoplastic water pollutants using graphene/ceria nanocomposite

Nanoplastic residues are a growing global concern for both aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems owing to their enduring harmful effects on the environment and the health of exposed organisms. This necessitates an ingenious research approach to develop a facile, multiplexed and sensitive detection for reliable analysis of these pollutants in real samples. Among the diverse molecules categorized under the taxonomic term “Nanoplastic residues”, this research focused on the simultaneous and sensitive electrochemical detection of two specific phenolic pollutants: hydroquinone and catechol. It explored the simultaneous electrochemical sensing, using fine ceria, CeO2 nanoparticles uniformly dispersed on reduced graphene oxide sheets. The synergistic effect of the nanoelectrocatalyst enhanced the selective molecular interactions and conductivity. A detailed analysis of the chemical and structural nature of the nanoelectrocatalyst was evaluated using the various physico-chemical characterization techniques. Furthermore, the evaluated sensor demonstrated a wide linear detection range of 5 – 220 µM for hydroquinone and 10 – 400 µM for catechol, with two distinct linear regions (10 – 200 µM and 250 – 400 µM) for catechol, and detection limits of 1.20 µM and 1.91 µM, respectively. The sensor’s selectivity amidst various interferents showed <5% variation and its practical usage demonstrated through real-water samples of tap, lake and river aliquots revealed an excellent recovery percentage that prompted its reliable practical utility.