Electrochemical sensor based on chlorohemin modified molecularly imprinted microgel for determination of 2,4-dichlorophenol

•A new molecularly imprinted polymer for 2,4-dichlorophenol is synthesized.•The polymer can imitate the dehalogenative function of the natural enzyme.•The polymer modified electrode shows a linear amperometric response to 2,4-dichlorophenol.•The imprinted sensor exhibits good stability, high specificity and acceptable reproducibility.

A newly designed molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) was synthesized and successfully utilized as a recognition element of an amperometric sensor for 2,4-dichlorophenol (2,4-DCP) detection. The MIP with a well-defined structure could imitate the dehalogenative function of the natural enzyme chloroperoxidase for 2,4-DCP. Imprinted sensor was fabricated in situ on a glassy carbon electrode surface by drop-coating the 2,4-DCP imprinted microgel suspension and chitosan/Nafion mixture. Under optimized conditions, the sensor showed a linear response in the range of 5.0–100 μmol L−1 with a detection limit of 1.6 μmol L−1. Additionally, the imprinted sensor demonstrated higher affinity to target 2,4-DCP over competitive chlorophenolic compounds than non-imprinted sensor. It also exhibited good stability and acceptable repeatability. The proposed sensor could be used for the determination of 2,4-DCP in water samples with the recoveries of 96.2–111.8%, showing a promising potential in practical application.

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