Photoelectrochemical conversion for ion-selective electrodes based on CdS semiconductor film.

Background: This study presents a novel photoelectrochemical (PEC) conversion method for ion-selective electrodes (ISEs) based on CdS semiconductor film. The motivation stems from the need to enhance the sensitivity and precision of ISEs for various analytical applications.

Results: We synthesized CdS film on FTO conductive glass via a hydrothermal method and utilized this electrode as the working electrode.

Near-Infrared Fluoride Sensing Nano-Optodes and Distance-Based Hydrogels Containing Aluminum-Phthalocyanine.

Fluoride ions are highly relevant in environmental and biological sciences, and there is a very limited number of established fluoride chemical sensors. Previous fluoride-selective optodes were demonstrated with metal-porphyrin as the ionophore and required a chromoionophore for optical signal transduction. We demonstrate here novel optical fluoride sensing with nano-optodes containing an aluminum-phthalocyanine complex (AlClPc) as the single active sensing component, simplifying the conventional ion-selective optodes approach.

Electrogenerated Chemiluminescence for Chronopotentiometric Sensors.

We introduce here a general strategy to read out chronopotentiometric sensors by electrogenerated chemiluminescence (ECL). The potentials generated in chronopotentiometry in a sample compartment are used to control the ECL in a separate detection compartment. A three-electrode cell is used to monitor the concentration changes of the analyte, while the luminol-HO system is responsible for ECL.

Overcoming Pitfalls in Boundary Elements Calculations with Computer Simulations of Ion Selective Membrane Electrodes.

Finite difference analysis of ion-selective membranes is a valuable tool for understanding a range of time dependent phenomena such as response times, long and medium term potential drifts, determination of selectivity, and (re)conditioning kinetics. It is here shown that an established approach based on the diffusion layer model applied to an ion-exchange membrane fails to use mass transport to account for concentration changes at the membrane side of the phase boundary. Instead, such concentrations are imposed by the ion-exchange equilibrium condition, without taking into account the source of these ions.

Voltammetric Thin-Layer Ionophore-Based Films: Part 2. Semi-Empirical Treatment.

This work reports on a semiempirical treatment that allows one to rationalize and predict experimental conditions for thin-layer ionophore-based films with cation-exchange capacity read out with cyclic voltammetry. The transition between diffusional mass transport and thin-layer regime is described with a parameter (α), which depends on membrane composition, diffusion coefficient, scan rate, and electrode rotating speed. Once the thin-layer regime is fulfilled (α = 1), the membrane behaves in some analogy to a potentiometric sensor with a second discrimination variable (the applied potential) that allows one to operate such electrodes in a multianalyte detection mode owing to the variable applied ion-transfer potentials.

Voltammetric Thin-Layer Ionophore-Based Films: Part 1. Experimental Evidence and Numerical Simulations.

Voltammetric thin layer (∼200 nm) ionophore-based polymeric films of defined ion-exchange capacity have recently emerged as a promising approach to acquire multi-ion information about the sample, in analogy to performing multiple potentiometric measurements with individual membranes. They behave under two different regimes that are dependent on the ion concentration. A thin layer control (no mass transport limitation of the polymer film or solution) is identified for ion concentrations of >10 μM, in which case the peak potential serves as the readout signal, in analogy to a potentiometric sensor.

Local Acidification of Membrane Surfaces for Potentiometric Sensing of Anions in Environmental Samples.

The work dramatically improves the lower detection limit of anion selective membranes at environmental pH by using local acidification to suppress hydroxide interference at the membrane surface. Three separate localized acidification strategies are explored to achieve this, with ionophore-based membrane electrodes selective for nitrite and dihydrogen phosphate as guiding examples. In a first approach, a concentrated acetic acid solution (ca.

All-solid-state potentiometric sensors with a multiwalled carbon nanotube inner transducing layer for anion detection in environmental samples.

While ion to electron transducing layers for the fabrication of potentiometric membrane electrodes for the detection of cations have been well established, similar progress for the sensing of anions has not yet been realized. We report for this reason on a novel approach for the development of all-solid-state anion selective electrodes using lipophilic multiwalled carbon nanotubes (f-MWCNTs) as the inner ion to electron transducing layer. This material can be solvent cast, as it conveniently dissolves in tetrahydrofuran (THF), an important advantage to develop uniform films without the need for using surfactants that might deteriorate the performance of the electrode.

Sensitive electrochemiluminescence biosensor based on Au-ITO hybrid bipolar electrode amplification system for cell surface protein detection.

Here we developed a novel hybrid bipolar electrode (BPE)-electrochemiluminescence (ECL) biosensor based on hybrid bipolar electrode (BPE) for the measurement of cancer cell surface protein using ferrocence (Fc) labeled aptamer as signal recognition and amplification probe. According to the electric neutrality of BPE, the cathode of U-shaped ITO BPE was electrochemically deposited by Au nanoparticles (NPs) to enhance its conductivity and surface area, decrease the overpotential of O2 reduction, which would correspondingly increase the oxidation current of Ru(bpy)3(2+)/tripropylamine (TPA) on the anode of BPE and resulting a ∼4-fold enhancement of ECL intensity. Then a signal amplification strategy was designed by introducing Fc modified aptamer on the anode surface of BPE through hybridization for detecting the amount of mucin-1 on MCF-7 cells.