Development of Electrochemical Biosensor Based on Nanostructured Carbon Materials for Paracetamol Determination

Abstract This work describes the development of a biosensor for paracetamol (PAR) determination based on a glassy carbon electrode (GCE) modified with multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) and laccase enzyme (LAC), which was immobilized by means of covalent crosslinking using glutaraldehyde. Voltammetric investigations were carried out by cyclic voltammetry (CV), differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) and square wave voltammetry (SWV). The biosensor was characterized by Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT‐IR). The results showed that the use of MWCNT/LAC composite increased the sensor sensitivity, compared to bare glassy carbon electrode. Factors affecting the voltammetric signals such as pH, ionic strength, scan rate and interferents were assessed. Linear range, limit of detection (LOD) and limit of quantitation (LOQ) obtained were 10–320 μmol L −1 , 7 μmol L −1 and 10 μmol L − 1 , respectively. The developed biosensor was successfully applied to PAR determination in urine and pharmaceutical formulations samples, with recovery varying from 99.96 to 106.20 % in urine samples and a relative standard deviation less than 1.04 % for PAR determination in pharmaceutical formulations. Therefore, the MWCNT‐LAC/GCE exhibits excellent sensitivity and can be used to PAR determination as a viable alternative in clinical analyzes and quality control of pharmaceutical formulations, through a simple, fast and inexpensive methodology.