Electropolymerization of 3-amino-5-mercapto-1,2,4-triazole on glassy carbon electrode and its electrocatalytic activity towards uric acid

Beyond templates: exploring uncharted territory in anisotropic gold nanostructure-oligomer composites synthesis and electrocatalytic performance towards environmental pollutants

The synthesis of polymer/oligomer-stabilized metal nanostructures (MNS) opens up a wide range of possibilities, from fundamental materials science to practical applications in domains such as medicine, catalysis, sensing, and energy. Because of the versatility of this synthetic approach, it is a dynamic and ever-changing field of study. These polymers/oligomers have precise control over the nucleation and growth kinetics, allowing the production of mono-disperse MNS with well-defined properties. The protective coating provided by polymers or oligomers increased the stability and colloidal dispersity of MNS in these oligomer-MNS composites. As a result, the current research reports the electrocatalytic reduction of nitrobenzene (NB) utilizing oligomeric aminomercaptotriazole (oligo AMTa) and oligo (AMTa-AuNS) modified glassy carbon (GC) electrodes developed via a wet chemical technique. UV-visible spectroscopy, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), high resolution mass spectroscopy (HR-MS), and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM) approaches were used to confirm the development of oligomer and AuNS. After that, the GC electrode was directly linked to the oligo AMTa and oligo AMTa-AuNS by dipping them in the appropriate solutions. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), and cycle voltammetry (CV) were all employed to confirm the fabrication of oligo AMTa and oligo AMTa-AuNS. Eventually, the electrochemical reduction of NB occurred using the fabricated electrodes. The catalytic activity of oligo AMTa-AuNS has been observed to be more than that of the other modified electrode. As an outcome, the film was employed to determine the sensitivity level of NB, and a limit of detection (LOD) of 2.8 nM was found. The straight-forward method's practical utility was proven by measuring NB in lake sample water.

Exploring Electrochemical Sensing for Fungicide Detection: Utilization of Newly Synthesized Oligomers

The determination of thiabendazole is crucial for ensuring food safety, environmental protection, and compliance with regulatory standards. Accurate detection helps prevent harmful exposure, ensuring the safety of agricultural products and safeguarding public health. Therefore, this study investigates the electrochemical sensing capabilities of newly synthesized oligo 3-amino-5-mercapto-1,2,4-triazole (oligo AMTa) using hydrogen tetrachloroaurate (III) (HAuCl4) as an oxidizing agent at room temperature for thiabendazole (TBZ) detection, employing a simple electrode fabrication process. The prepared oligo AMTa was thoroughly characterized using UV-visible spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Energy Dispersive X-ray Analysis (EDAX), X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), high-resolution mass spectroscopy (HR-MS), and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) to confirm its oligomerization structure and properties. The IR spectrum of oligo AMTa reveals a new peak at 1449 cm-1, indicating the conversion of -NH2 groups to -N=N- groups during oligomerization, unlike AMTa. Additionally, the disappearance of the -SH group peak at 2615 cm-1 in oligo AMTa suggests an S-S linkage involvement in the oligomerization process. In the oligo AMTa XPS spectrum, the presence of C=N is displayed by a small peak at 287.3 eV, and oligomerization via -NH and N=N is confirmed by the lack of a 284.0 eV peak for C-C or C=C. Gold nanoparticle formation is not demonstrated by the 84.8 eV peak, which implies that the gold atom is not in the Au0 state. The HR-MS spectrum of oligo AMTa shows a peak at m/z 564.08, indicating a chain of five monomers, and another peak at m/z 435.03, confirming the presence of a tetrameric form of AMTa. After that, the GC electrode was directly linked to the oligo AMTa by the potentiodynamic method. SEM, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), and cyclic voltammetry (CV) were all employed to confirm the fabrication of oligo AMTa. The SEM image illustrates the formation of a particlelike structure with a uniform size of the oligomer after cycling in 0.1 M H2SO4. After electrocycling, the size of the oligomer was reduced from 2.6 μm to 30 nm. The oligo AMTa-modified electrode possesses the highest electroactive surface area and electrical conductivity due to several key factors. First, the presence of amino (-NH2) and thiol (-SH) functional groups in AMTa enhances the surface coverage and density of electroactive sites, increasing the electroactive surface area. Additionally, the conjugated structure of AMTa facilitates efficient electron transfer, resulting in enhanced electrical conductivity compared to unmodified electrodes. Eventually, the electrochemical oxidation of TBZ occurred using the fabricated electrodes. The GC/oligo AMTa electrode exhibited a four-fold increase in oxidation current for TBZ compared to unmodified GC electrodes. This enhancement is due to the improved surface properties from the oligo AMTa modification, which significantly boosts TBZ adsorption through strong interactions like hydrogen bonding and π-π stacking. These interactions, along with the increased surface area and catalytic properties, facilitate effective electron transfer, resulting in a higher oxidation current. As an outcome, the film was employed to determine the sensitivity level of TBZ, and a LOD of 1.8 × 10-11 M (S/N = 3) was found. The straightforward method's practical utility was proven by measuring TBZ in tap water, water spinach, and pear juice samples. The comprehensive characterization of oligo AMTa provided insights into its interaction mechanisms with thiabendazole, contributing to the development of a reliable, cost-effective, and efficient sensor.

Electrochemical preparation and the characterizations of poly(3,5-diamino 1,2,4-triazole) film for the selective determination of pyridoxine in pharmaceutical formulations

This work describes the synthesis and characterization of a polymeric film of 3,5-diamino 1,2,4-triazole on a pencil graphite electrode for the selective sensing of pyridoxine (PY). The PGE was modified using the electropolymerization process by the potentiodynamic method. The polymerized electrode (PDAT/PGE) was characterized by IR, SEM, AFM, cyclic voltammetry, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. PY undergoes irreversible oxidation at 0.79 V on PDAT/PGE in phosphate buffer of pH 5. Using the differential pulse voltammetric technique (DPV), PY showed a linear range from 5 to 950 μM with a lower detection limit of 2.96 μM. The PDAT/PGE was applied for the analytical determination of PY in pharmaceutical tablets with good recovery.

Graphical abstract

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s11696-023-02777-5.

Constructing Binder- and Carbon Additive-Free Organosulfur Cathodes Based on Conducting Thiol-Polymers through Electropolymerization for Lithium-Sulfur Batteries

Herein, the concept of constructing binder- and carbon additive-free organosulfur cathode was proved based on thiol-containing conducting polymer poly(4-(thiophene-3-yl) benzenethiol) (PTBT). The PTBT featured the polythiophene-structure main chain as a highly conducting framework and the benzenethiol side chain to copolymerize with sulfur and form a crosslinked organosulfur polymer (namely S/PTBT). Meanwhile, it could be in-situ deposited on the current collector by electro-polymerization, making it a binder-free and free-standing cathode for Li-S batteries. The S/PTBT cathode exhibited a reversible capacity of around 870 mAh g-1 at 0.1 C and improved cycling performance compared to the physically mixed cathode (namely S&PTBT). This multifunction cathode eliminated the influence of the additives (carbon/binder), making it suitable to be applied as a model electrode for operando analysis. Operando X-ray imaging revealed the remarkable effect in the suppression of polysulfides shuttle via introducing covalent bonds, paving the way for the study of the intrinsic mechanisms in Li-S batteries.

Continual and accurate home monitoring of uric acid in urine samples with uricase-packaged nanoflowers assisted portable electrochemical uricometer

A convenient, fast and non-invasive portable electrochemical uricometer (PUM) assisted with the uricase-packaged nanoflowers (NFs) was constructed for continually and accurately monitoring of uric acid (UA) in urine samples at random intervals in just 20 s. Only a small amount of urine (50 μL) was needed for each test. Electrochemical deposition was adopted to modify gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) on screen-printed carbon electrodes (SPCE) and uricase-inorganic hybrid NFs (UOx-NFs) induced by calcium ions (Ca²⁺) were introduced for UA detection with expected specificity. Cyclic voltammetry (CV) (detection limit of 8.87 μM and liner range of 0-4 mM) and amperometry (detection limit of 0.82 μM and liner range of 0-5 mM) protocols were studied for UA detection, respectively. Finally, the uric acid in urine had be successfully continually monitored from volunteers with various dietary choosing, the results of which can be adopted as the effective evidence for uric acid control.

Fabrication of low-cost sustainable electrocatalyst: a diagnostic tool for multifunctional disorders in human fluids

In purine metabolism, the xanthine oxidoreductase enzyme converts hypoxanthine (HXN) to xanthine (XN) and XN to uric acid (UA). This leads to the deposition of UA crystals in several parts of the body and the serum UA level might be associated with various multifunctional disorders. The dietary intake of caffeine (CF) and ascorbic acid (AA) decreases the UA level in the serum, which leads to cellular damage. Hence, it is highly needed to monitor the UA level in the presence of AA, XN, HXN, and CF and vice versa. Considering this sequence of complications, the present paper reports the fabrication of an electrochemical sensor using low-cost N-doped carbon dots (CDs) for the selective and simultaneous determination of UA in the presence of AA, XN, HXN, and CF at the physiological pH. The colloidal solution of CDs was prepared by the pyrolysis of asparagine and fabricated on a GC electrode by cycling the potential from -0.20 to +1.2 V in a solution containing CDs and 0.01 M H2SO4. Here, the surface -NH2 functionalities of CDs were used to make a thin film of CDs on the GC electrode. FT-IR spectroscopy confirmed the involvement of the -NH2 group in the formation of the CD film. HR-TEM analysis depicts that the formed CDs showed spherical particles with a size of 1.67 nm and SEM analysis exhibits the 89 nm CD film on the GC electrode surface. The fabricated CD film was successfully used for the sensitive and selective determination of UA. The determination of UA was achieved selectively in a mixture consisting of AA, XN, HXN, and CF with 50-fold high concentration. The CDs-film fabricated electrode has several benefits over the bare electrode: (i) well-resolved oxidation peaks for five analytes, (ii) boosted sensitivity, (iii) shifted oxidation as well as on-set potentials toward less positive potentials, and (iv) high stability. The practical utility of the present sensor was tested by simultaneously determining the multifactorial disorders-causing agents in human fluids. The electrocatalyst developed in the present study is sustainable and can be used for multiple analyses; besides, the electrochemical method used for the fabrication of the CD film is environmentally benign.

Mechanism of Nanocomposite Formation in the Layer-by-Layer Single-Step Electropolymerization of π-Conjugated Azopolymers and Reduced Graphene Oxide: An Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy Study

This work presents a study of the formation mechanism of electrochemically deposited alternating layers of azopolymer and graphene oxide, as well as a systematic study of the physicochemical characteristics of the resulting nanocomposite films by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. The nanocomposite films were constructed by cyclic electropolymerization, which allowed for the assembly of thin films with alternating azopolymers and reduced graphene oxide (rGO) layers in one step. Morphological characterizations were performed by atomic force microscopy and scanning electron microscopy and verified that the electrodeposition of the poly(azo-BBY) polymeric film occurred during the anodic sweep, and the deposition of graphene oxide sheets took place during the cathodic sweep. By analyzing the electrochemical impedance spectra using equivalent circuit models, variations in the resistance and capacitance values of the system were monitored as a function of the amount of electrodeposited material on the fluorine doped tin oxide electrode. In addition, the interfacial phenomena that occurred during the electroreduction of the rGO sheets were monitored with the same method.

Selective determination of non-organophosphorus insecticide using DNA aptamer-based single-use biosensors

In the present study, we developed a disposable aptamer-based biosensor for rapid, sensitive, and reliable detection of acetamiprid (ACE). To improve the sensitivity of the aptasensor, poly-5-amino-2-mercapto-1,3,4-thiadiazole [P(AMT)] and gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) were progressively electrodeposited on the screen-printed electrode (SPE) surface by using cyclic voltammetry (CV) technique. For the determination of ACE, thiol-modified primary aptamer (Apt1) was selected by using the SELEX method and immobilized on the surface of the P(AMT) and AuNPs-modified SPE (SPE/P(AMT)/AuNPs) via AuS bonding. Then, the surface-bound aptamer was incubated with ACE for 45 Min. After that, the biotin-labeled aptamer 2 (Apt2) was interacted with the ACE, then the enzyme-labeled step was performed. In this step, alkaline phosphatase (ALP) was bound to the surface through the interaction between Apt2 labeled with biotin and streptavidin (strep)-ALP conjugate. The determination of ACE was achieved by measuring the oxidation signal of α-naphthol, which is formed on the electrode surface through the interaction of ALP with α-naphthyl phosphate. The working range of the developed aptasensor was determined as 5 × 10^-12 -5 × 10^-10  mol L^-1 with a low limit of detection (1.5 pmol L^-1 ). It was also found that the proposed aptasensor possessed great advantages such as low cost, good selectivity, and good reproducibility.

Ultra-sensitive electrochemical detection of bacteremia enabled by redox-active gold nanoparticles (raGNPs) in a nano-sieving microfluidic system (NS-MFS)

Early diagnosis of bacterial infections is crucial to improving survival rates by enabling treatment with appropriate antibiotics within the first few hours of infection. This paper presents a highly sensitive amperometric biosensor for the detection of several pathogenic bacterial cells in blood plasma around 30 min. The proposed device is based on an electropolymerized self-assembled layer on gold nanoparticles operated in a portable nano-sieving microfluidic system (NS-MFS). The redox-active gold nanoparticles (raGNPs) enhanced the electrical conductivity and provided a greater number of electrochemically active molecules for sensing, while improving resistance to the fouling of sensors by oxidation products in blood plasma. The detection limit of the device has been shown to reach 10 CFU/mL for Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus spiked in plasma. The dynamic range of the sensing system falls between 10 and 10⁵ CFU/mL in a buffer solution by cyclic voltammetry (CV) measurements. The results demonstrated that the raGNPs/NS-MFS can successful detect P. aeruginosa and S. aureus in human plasma, and is very useful for the diagnosis of bacteremia from clinical samples.

Highly Productive Synthesis, Characterization, and Fluorescence and Heavy Metal Ion Adsorption Properties of Poly(2,5-dimercapto-1,3,4-thiadiazole) Nanosheets

Poly(2,5-dimercapto-1,3,4-thiadiazole) (PBT) nanosheets were synthesized by chemical oxidative synthesis under mild conditions. The media, oxidant species, monomer concentrations, oxidant/monomer molar ratio, and temperature were optimized to achieve higher yields and better performance. The molecular structure, morphology, and properties of the nanosheets were analyzed by Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR), ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis), and fluorescence spectroscopies, wide-angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD), matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization/time-of-flight (MALDI-TOF) mass spectrometry, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), scanning electronic microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and simultaneous thermogravimetry and differential scanning calorimetry (TG-DSC). It was found that the polymerization of 2,5-dimercapto-1,3,4-thiadiazole occurs via dehydrogenation coupling between two mercapto groups to form the ⁻S⁻S⁻ bond. PBTs show the highest polymerization yield of up to 98.47% and form uniform nanosheets with a thickness of 89~367 nm. poly(2,5-dimercapto-1,3,4-thiadiazole) polymers (PBTs) exhibit good chemical resistance, high thermostability, interesting blue-light emitting fluorescence, and wonderful heavy metal ion adsorption properties. Particularly, the PBT nanosheets having a unique synergic combination of three kinds of active ⁻S⁻, ⁻SH, and =N⁻ groups with a moderate specific area of 15.85 m² g^-1 exhibit an ultra-rapid initial adsorption rate of 10,653 mg g^-1 h^-1 and an ultrahigh adsorption capacity of up to 680.01 mg g^-1 for mercury ion, becoming ultrafast chelate nanosorbents with a high adsorption capacity. With these impressive properties, PBT nanosheets are very promising materials in the fields of water treatment, sensors, and electrodes.

A new class of electropolymerized conducting film from the pyrimidine family for the simultaneous determination of ascorbic acid and dopamine

We report the electropolymerization of 4-amino-6-hydroxy-2-mercaptopyrimidine on a glassy carbon electrode and its application for simultaneous as well as the selective determination of ascorbic acid and dopamine at pH 4.

New 1,2,4-triazole-based azo-azomethine dye. Part III: Synthesis, characterization, thermal property, spectrophotometric and computational studies

A new 1,2,4-triazole-based azo-azomethine compound, H2L, has been prepared by condensation reaction of 1-(3-formyl-4-hydroxyphenylazo)-4-ethylbenzene with prepared triazole-based diamine. The structure of H2L was characterized by using FT-IR, UV-Vis and (1)H NMR spectroscopic methods as well as elemental analysis. Hard model chemometrics method has been used to determine the formation constants of zinc(II), copper(II), nickel(II) and cobalt(II) complexes of H2L in DMSO by UV-Vis spectrophotometric method. Solvatochromic behavior of the dye has been also investigated in some organic solvents with different polarities. Thermal properties of the prepared dye was examined by thermogravimetric analysis. Results indicated that the framework of the dye was stable up to 245 °C. Furthermore,(1)H chemical shifts and UV-Vis of H2L were studied by the gauge independent atomic orbital (GIAO), continuous set of gauge transformations (CSGT) and time-dependent density functional theory (TD-DFT) methods respectively at the level of density functional theory using B3LYP/6-311+G(d) basis sets in DMSO. The computational data are in reasonably good agreement with the experimental data.

New 1,2,4-triazole-based azo-azomethine dyes. Part II: synthesis, characterization, electrochemical properties and computational studies

A new series of monoiminated 1,2,4-triazole-based azo-azomethine dyes have been synthesized via condensation reaction of 4-amino-3-methyl-5-mercapto-1,2,4-triazole with various substituted azo-coupled salicylaldehyde. The dyes have been characterized by using FT-IR, UV-Vis and (1)H NMR spectroscopic methods as well as elemental analysis. The electrochemical behavior of the dyes has been investigated by cyclic voltammetry in DMSO at five different scan rates. Solvatochromic behavior of the dyes has been also investigated in four organic solvents with different polarities. Furthermore, the (1)H chemical shielding of the dyes were studied by the gauge independent atomic orbital (GIAO) method at the level of density functional theory (DFT).

Highly sensitive determination of uric acid in the presence of major interferents using a conducting polymer film modified electrode

This paper describes the sensitive and selective determination of uric acid (UA) in the presence of important interferences, ascorbic acid (AA), dopamine (DA), tyrosine (Tyr) and methionine (Met) at physiological pH using an electropolymerized film of 3-amino-5-mercapto-1,2,4-triazole on glassy carbon (p-AMTa) electrode. The p-AMTa electrode shows an excellent electrocatalytic activity towards UA. This was understood from the observed higher oxidation current and heterogeneous rate constant (3.24×10(-5)ms(-1)) for UA when compared to bare GC electrode (4.63×10(-6)ms(-1)). The selective determination of UA in the presence of 1000-fold excess of AA was achieved using p-AMTa electrode. Further, the p-AMTa electrode was successfully used for the simultaneous and selective determination of UA in the presence of important interferences, DA, Tyr and Met. Using amperometric method, 40nM UA was detected for the first time. The current response of UA was increased linearly while increasing its concentration from 40nM to 0.1mM and a detection limit was found to be 0.52nM (S/N=3). Finally, the practical application of the present method was demonstrated by determining UA in human urine and blood serum samples.