A glassy carbon electrode based on graphene quantum dots (GQDs) for simultaneous detection of acetaminophen and ascorbic acid

Abstract

In this present work, graphene quantum dots (GQDs) were handily prepared with citric acid by the pyrolysis method and used to fabricate an electrochemical sensor for the simultaneous determination of acetaminophen (AC) and ascorbic acid (AA) in compound preparation. The electrochemical properties of the GQD modified glassy carbon electrode (GCE) were characterized by differential pulse voltammetry and cyclic voltammetry. The electrochemical response of the modified electrode for AC and AA was separately investigated and had a good linear relationship in the ranges of 5–80 μmol L⁻¹ and 25–1350 μmol L⁻¹, respectively. The concentration range for the simultaneous determination of AC and AA was 1–200 μmol L⁻¹ and 25–1400 μmol L⁻¹, respectively. The GQD modified GCE showed high sensitivity, good selectivity and acceptable precision for AC and AA. The experimental results indicated that the proposed method can be applied for pharmaceutical analysis of AC and AA, especially in compound preparation.