Green synthesis of ZnO/ZnCo2O4 and its application for electrochemical determination of bisphenol A

•ZnO/ZnCo2O4 have been synthesized by Glycyrrhiza glabra extract as a green agent.•The electrochemical sensor based on the magnetic nanocomposite was fabricated.•The sensor was successfully used for determination of bisphenol A in water samples.•The sensor showed acceptable repeatability and stability for bisphenol A detection. The present research reports the synthesis of the ZnO/ZnCo2O4 nanocomposite using a hydrothermal reaction in the presence of Glycyrrhiza glabra extract as one of the green precursors acting as reducing and capping agent. The scanning electron microscopy (SEM), vibrating sample magnetometry (VSM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) as well as fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) have been utilized for characterizing the nanocomposite. In addition, ZnO/ZnCo2O4 has been utilized as an electrode modifier to detect bisphenol A (BPA). At the optimized condition, ZnO/ZnCo2O4/Screen printed electrode (SPE) could be employed for quantifying BPA via differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) with the linear range between 0.06 and 200.0 µM and correlation coefficient equal to 0.9985. Moreover, 0.01 µM for limit of detection (LOD) was calculated. Based on the results, our sensor showed high selectivity to BPA. Furthermore, acceptable stability and repeatability has been demonstrated in the sensor. Ultimately, ZnO/ZnCo2O4/SPE has been substantially utilized to detect BPA in the water samples.