Electrochemical sensors for hydroquinone and catechol based on nano-flake graphite and activated carbon sensitive materials

The nano-flake graphite and bamboo activated carbon composites (NFG-BAC) were obtained by simple ball-milling and carbonization of bamboo powder and flake graphite at high temperature, which was modified on the surface of the electrode to obtain an electrochemical sensor for the simultaneous separation and determination of hydroquinone (HQ) and catechol (CC). NFG-BAC showed good wettability to electrolyte solution and adsorption capacity to target analytes. NFC-BAC composites possess both the rich porosity and high specific surface area of activated carbon and the good conductivity of nano-flake graphite. Moreover, NFG-BAC composites show good wettability to electrolyte solution and adsorption capacity to target analytes. Compared with the gold-standard methodology for water analysis, electrochemical sensing has fast, sensitive and other advantages. When the NFG-BAC/GCE sensor is used for quantitative analysis of HQ and CC, the linear range is wide (2–1000 μM for HQ and 1–1000 μM for CC), the detection limit is low (0.4 μM for HQ and 0.2 μM for CC), and the detection accuracy of these two pollutants in environmental water samples is high. Due to the sensor fabrication is simple, low-cost and efficient, the NFG-BAC/GCE sensor can be used for real-time monitoring of the pollution of catechol in environmental water samples.