Non-Enzymatic Selective Determination of Catechol Using Copper Microparticles Modified Polypyrrole Coated Glassy Carbon Electrodes

A selective non-enzymatic sensor for catechol using Copper – Polypyrrole composite modified glassy carbon electrode (Cu-PPy/GCE) is reported. The modified electrode was prepared in a facile manner by a two step potentiostatic process of electropolymerization of pyrrole on the bare electrode, followed by deposition of Copper. The modified electrodes were characterized using electron microscopic, spectroscopic and electrochemical techniques. The selective non-enzymatic detection of catechol was analyzed through differential pulse voltammetry and chronoamperometry. Under optimized experimental conditions, the Cu-PPy/GCE was found to span a wide linear range from 0.05 to 1000 μM with a lower limit of detection (3σ/m) of 0.010 μM using chronoamperometry. The selectivity of the modified electrode was also investigated in the presence of typical interfering agents like hydroquinone, ascorbic acid, etc. The practical feasibility of the proposed method was demonstrated through the estimation of catechol in tap water samples.