Photoelectrochemical sensor for nitrite determination based on the etching of BiOCl/Zn0.5Cd0.5S

A rapid photoelectrochemical (PEC) sensor was constructed for nitrite detection in food based on the one-step chemical etching strategy of BiOCl/Zn0.5Cd0.5S (BOC/ZCS) nanocomposites by nitrite. BOC/ZCS heterojunction was prepared by a simple coprecipitation method, and it was found that BOC/ZCS showed significant photoelectrochemical (PEC) activity. The results of this study confirmed that the decrease in the photocurrent of the sensor was linked to the etching of ZCS by nitrite under acidic conditions. Under optimized conditions, the BOC/ZCS-based PEC sensor showed good analytical properties for detecting nitrite, with linear ranges of 1–100 μM and 100–600 μM. The detection limit of the sensor was 0.41 μM (S/N = 3). Excellent repeatability, reproducibility, low background noise, and immunity to interference were demonstrated using the proposed system, and satisfactory results were achieved for the nitrite assay using real samples. These results demonstrate a new method for nitrite detection developed using the proposed PEC sensor. •BiOCl/ZnCdS heterojunction was prepared by a simple and facile strategy for the first time.•BiOCl/ZnCdS showed significant photoelectrochemical (PEC) activity, and was firstly used for fabricating PEC sensor.•One-step Chemical etching strategy for photoelectrochemical sensor was proposed firstly for nitrite detection in food.