Preparation of a Carbon paste electrode with Active materials for the detection of Tetracycline

The Electrochemical sensor based on carbon-clay paste electrode (CCPE) was constructed for sensitive determination of Tetracycline (Tc). The mineralogical composition, morphology, structure and performance of CCPE were characterized using X-ray diffraction powder, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Cyclic Voltammetry analysis. The CCPE is constituted of two types of clay having the ratio 1/1 and 2/1 characteristic of kaolinite and montmorillonite clay respectively. Its porous structure is ascribed to the presence of graphite. The CCPE exhibited a good electrocatalytic activity towards the oxidation of Tc. The electrochemical kinetics and mechanism of Tc were proposed, showing that Tc electrocatalytic oxidation reaction was controlled by diffusion process and took place in three steps. A low concentration of Tc was detected by amperometry with the linear ranges of 0.5μM-0.8 μM (R² = 0.98), the sensitivity was 8.01 μA/μM.cm², the limit of detection and quantification were 5.16x10^-3μM(S/N = 3) and 1.72x10^-2μM respectively. Thus, the proposed electrode provides a promising and prospective CCPE sensing platform for the detection of Tc in the environment.