Carbon-coated nickel magnetic nanoparticles modified electrodes as a sensor for determination of acetaminophen

A novel type of carbon-coated nickel magnetic nanoparticles modified glass carbon electrodes (C–Ni/GCE) was fabricated and the electrochemical properties of N-acetyl-p-aminophenol (acetaminophen or paracetamol, ACOP) were studied on the C–Ni/GCE. Carbon-coated nickel magnetic nanoparticles showed an excellent electrocatalytic activity for the oxidation of ACOP and accelerated electron transfer between the electrode and ACOP. The anodic peaks of ACOP, dopamine (DA) and ascorbic acid (AA) can be well separated on the C–Ni/GCE. Differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) was used for their simultaneous determination. The linear calibration curves of ACOP, DA and AA were obtained in the range of 7.8 × 10−6 to 1.1 × 10−4 mol L−1, 4.0 × 10−6 to 1.8 × 10−4 mol L−1 and 1.4 × 10−4 to 1.3 × 10−3 mol L−1, respectively. The C–Ni/GCE showed good sensitivity, selectivity and stability, and has been applied to the determination of ACOP in effervescent dosage samples.