Simultaneous Detection of Dihydroxybenzene Isomers with ZnO Nanorod/Carbon Cloth Electrodes

Herein, ZnO nanorods with an average diameter of 50 nm were uniformly anchored on the surface of carbon cloth directly by a simple hydrothermal method. The nanorods growing in situ along the specific direction of (002) have single-crystalline features and a columnar structure. On the basis of the ZnO nanorod/carbon cloth composite, free-standing electrodes were fabricated for the simultaneous determination of dihydroxybenzene isomers. The ZnO nanorod/carbon cloth electrodes exhibited excellent electrochemical stability, high sensitivity, and high selectivity. The linear ranges of concentration for hydroquinone, catechol, and resorcinol were 2–30, 2–45, and 2–385 μM, respectively, and the corresponding limits of detection (S/N = 3) were 0.57, 0.81, and 7.2 μM. The outstanding sensing properties of ZnO/carbon cloth electrodes have a great promise for the development of free-standing biosensors and other electrochemical devices.