Sensitive electrochemical detection of ciprofloxacin at screen-printed diamond electrodes

This study investigates the effect of chemical surface termination on the electrochemical characteristics of boron-doped diamond powder (BDDP). The aim is to realize highly sensitive electrochemical detection of ciprofloxacin (CIP) on BDDP-printed electrodes. To this end, we prepared oxygen-terminated BDDP (O-BDDP) and hydrogen-terminated BDDP (H-BDDP), and mixed them with an insulating polyester (PES) resin binder to obtain BDDP ink for the printed electrode. Scanning electron microscopy of the BDDP-printed electrodes revealed that the O-BDDPs were partially covered with PES resin, while the H-BDDPs were entirely covered with resin. This structural difference might explain the lower charge-transfer resistance of the Ru(NH3)62+/3+ redox reaction at the O-BDDP-printed electrode than at the H-BDDP-printed electrode. The slope of the calibration curve of the linear sweep voltammogram of CIP was steeper at the O-BDDP-printed electrode than at the H-BDDP-printed electrode and the O-BDD thin-film electrode, and was similar to that at the H-BDD thin-film electrode. Using the O-BDDP-printed electrode, we determined the CIP in artificial buffer-diluted urine in the concentration range 1–30 μM with a recovery of 107%. We conclude that the O-BDDP-printed electrodes provide a highly sensitive and disposable electrochemical sensor for CIP detection. [Display omitted]