Electropolymerization of 4-aminobenzoic acid containing nano-Au deposited on carbon paste electrode for determination of acetaminophen

Abstract

The conducting polymer films have been widely applied in the field of electrochemistry owing to their good<br />stability, permselectivity, unique physical and chemical properties. A novel nano-Au/poly (4-aminobenzoic<br />acid) (PABA) film modified carbon paste electrode was fabricated for sensitive detection of acetaminophen<br />in this paper. The PABA film and nano-Au/PABA film were characterized by scanning electron microscope.<br />The nano-Au/PABA film exhibited obviously catalytic performance to the determination of acetaminophen<br />with a high sensitivity and a wide linear range. Under optimum conditions (pH, the concentration of 4-<br />aminobenzoic acid, electro-polymerization cycles), linearity between the oxidation peak current and the<br />acetaminophen concentration was obtained in the range of 1.0 × 10–7 – 8.0 × 10–5 mol L-1 with a detection<br />limit of 8.0 × 10–8 mol L-1 (S/N = 3). In addition, the nano-Au/PABA film modified electrode was<br />successfully employed to determine the acetaminophen in commercial drugs, and this work has shed some<br />doubt on the redox mechanism of acetaminophen at the sensor.