Poly(o-phenylenediamine) electrosynthesized in the absence of added background electrolyte provides a new permselectivity benchmark for biosensor applications

In attempts to improve the permselective properties of poly(o-phenylenediamine), PoPD, for biosensor applications, its electrosynthesis was carried out in the presence and absence of a variety of background electrolytes. Surprisingly, not only was electropolymerization efficient when no charge carriers were added to the monomer solution, the selectivity of the PoPD generated under this condition was superior to other published forms. Interpretation of these findings in terms of ion entrapment also supports the hypothesis that self-blocking by biosensor interference species present in solution is involved in determining PoPD permeability, which increases selectivity in bio-monitoring applications.