Au nanoparticles/poly(caffeic acid) composite modified glassy carbon electrode for voltammetric determination of acetaminophen

•An Au nanoparticles/poly(caffeic acid) composite modified GC electrode was prepared.•The modified electrode showed catalytic activities towards acetaminophen.•The proposed method is simple, reliable and sensitive.•Successful applicability in blood, urine and pharmaceutical samples.

An Au nanoparticles/poly(caffeic acid) (AuNPs/PCA) composite modified glassy carbon (GC) electrode was prepared by successively potentiostatic technique in pH 7.4 phosphate buffer solution containing 0.02 mM caffeic acid and 1.0 mM HAuCl4. Electrochemical characterization of the AuNPs/PCA-GC electrode was investigated by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and cyclic voltammetry. The electrochemical behavior of acetaminophen (AP) at the AuNPs/PCA-GC electrode was also studied by cyclic voltammetry. Compared with bare GC and poly(caffeic acid) modified GC electrode, the AuNPs/PCA-GC electrode was exhibited excellent electrocatalytic activity toward the oxidation of AP. The plot of catalytic current versus AP concentration showed two linear segments in the concentration ranges 0.2–20 µM and 50–1000 µM. The detection limit of 14 nM was obtained by using the first range of the calibration plot. The AuNPs/PCA-GC electrode has been successfully applied and validated by analyzing AP in blood, urine and pharmaceutical samples.

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