Synergistic interaction of phosphorous-doped BiOI with functionalized carbon nanofibers for efficient electrochemical sensing of dimetridazole

Abstract

Dimetridazole (DMZ) is an antibiotic drug, commonly applied in both human medicine and poultry farming to treat bacterial and protozoal infections. DMZ is incorporated into animal feed to promote and accelerate animal growth. Despite its effectiveness, excess intake of DMZ can result in harmful effects. Therefore, careful regulation is essential to mitigate potential risks in both veterinary and medical applications. In this research work, a 2D/1D nanocomposite is prepared using phosphorous-doped bismuthoxyiodide (P-BiOI) nanosheets decorated on functionalized carbon nanofibers (f-CNF) as a modified electrocatalyst on glassy carbon electrodes (GCE) to detect DMZ. The formation of a P-BiOI/f-CNF hybrid nanostructure provides a larger surface area, facilitating more active sites for electrocatalytic behaviour with a low detection limit of 14.82 nM and an extensive linear range from 0.03 to 257.68 µM. The results confirmed that the DMZ reduction reaction is diffusion-controlled and irreversible. Moreover, the fabricated sensor provides outstanding repeatability, reproducibility, and selectivity. The long-term stability test results showed retention of 94.45% of the response to DMZ over 28 d, indicating excellent storage stability performance. The P-BiOI/f-CNF/GCE sensor was successfully validated in real samples (milk, human urine, soil, and pond water) with good recovery rates. The results provide new insights for the real-time detection of DMZ.