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Simultaneous voltammetric detection of cadmium(II), arsenic(III), and selenium(IV) using gold nanostar–modified screen-printed carbon electrodes and modified Britton-Robinson buffer

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Abstract

The present work reports a newly developed square wave anodic strip** voltammetry (SWASV) methodology using novel gold nanostar–modified screen-printed carbon electrodes (AuNS/SPCE) and modified Britton-Robinson buffer (mBRB) for simultaneous detection of trace cadmium(II), arsenic(III), and selenium(IV). During individual and simultaneous detection, Cd2+, As3+, and Se4+ exhibited well-separated SWASV peaks at approximately − 0.48, − 0.09, and 0.65 V, respectively (versus Ag/AgCl reference electrode), which enabled a highly selective detection of the three analytes. Electrochemical impedance spectrum tests showed a significant decrease in charge transfer resistance with the AuNS/SPCE (0.8 kΩ) compared with bare SPCE (2.4 kΩ). Cyclic voltammetry experiments showed a significant increase in electroactive surface area with electrode modification. The low charge transfer resistance and high electroactive surface area contributed to the high sensitivity for Cd2+ (0.0767 μA (0.225 μg L−1)−1), As3+ (0.2213 μA (μg L−1)−1), and Se4+ (μA (μg L−1)−1). The three analytes had linear strip** responses over the concentration range of 0 to 100 μg L−1, with the obtained LoD for Cd2+, As3+, and Se4+ of 1.6, 0.8, and 1.6 μg L−1, respectively. In comparison with individual detection, the simultaneous detection of As3+ and Se4+ showed peak height reductions of 40.8% and 42.7%, respectively. This result was associated with the possible formation of electrochemically inactive arsenic triselenide (As2Se3) during the preconcentration step. Surface water analysis resulted in average percent recoveries of 109% for Cd2+, 93% for As3+, and 92% for Se4+, indicating the proposed method is accurate and reliable for the simultaneous detection of Cd2+, As3+, and Se4+ in real water samples.

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Funding

The authors received financial support from the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command – Soldier Center (Contract No. W911QY-17-2-0004) and the U.S. National Science Foundation Grant No. 1543042.

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  1. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Massachusetts Lowell, One University Ave., Lowell, MA, 01854, USA

    Dingnan Lu, Connor Sullivan & Pradeep Kurup

  2. US Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Soldier Center (CCDC SC), General Greene Ave, Natick, MA, 01760, USA

    Eric M. Brack & Christopher P. Drew

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Lu, D., Sullivan, C., Brack, E.M. et al. Simultaneous voltammetric detection of cadmium(II), arsenic(III), and selenium(IV) using gold nanostar–modified screen-printed carbon electrodes and modified Britton-Robinson buffer. Anal Bioanal Chem 412, 4113–4125 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-020-02642-4

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