Electrogenerated chemiluminescence sensor for the determination of propranolol hydrochloride

Abstract

An electrogenerated chemiluminescence (ECL) sensor for the determination of propranolol hydrochloride was fabricated by employing tris(2,2′-bipyridyl)ruthenium(II) (Ru(bpy)₃²⁺) as an ECL signal producer and graphene as a modified material. The ECL sensor was fabricated by adsorbing Ru(bpy)₃²⁺ onto a mixture of graphene and Nafion. The introduction of conductive graphene into Nafion was found to greatly enhance the ECL intensity of Ru(bpy)₃²⁺ and the ECL intensity of Ru(bpy)₃²⁺ decreased in the presence of propranolol hydrochloride. Based on this phenomenon, a sensitive and stable ECL method was developed for the determination of propranolol hydrochloride by employing a Ru(bpy)₃²⁺–graphene–Nafion modified electrode. Under the optimized conditions, the ECL intensity was linear with the concentration of propranolol hydrochloride over a range of 1.0 × 10⁻¹⁰ to 5.0 × 10⁻⁹ mol L⁻¹ with a detection limit of 3 × 10⁻¹¹ mol L⁻¹. The ECL sensor exhibited long-term stability with a relative standard deviation of 4.1% for sixteen continuous determinations of 2.0 × 10⁻⁹ mol L⁻¹propranolol hydrochloride. The developed method has been successfully applied to the determination of propranolol hydrochloride in pharmaceutical samples.