Electrochemical detection of phenol in alkaline solution using nanoporous gold thin film electrode

Abstract

Performance of nanoporous (NPG) thin film electrode in electrochemical sensing of phenol in alkaline environment was investigated. The NPG thin film with a roughness factor of about 25 was fabricated by electrochemically dealloying Si out of a relevant AuSi alloy co-deposited on Si substrate. The oxidation behavior of phenol on the as-synthesized NPG thin film was then observed using cyclic voltammetry and amperometry techniques. It was found that the NPG electrode exhibited large linear detection range (2-300 M), good sensitivity (96 nA/M) and relatively low detection limit (2 M). The results of this study reveal a high potential for development of sensors based on NPG platform for the determination of pollutants in practical, diverse environmental conditions.