Highly electrochemically active Ti3C2Tx MXene/MWCNT nanocomposite for the simultaneous sensing of paracetamol, theophylline, and caffeine in human blood samples

Abstract

The facile fabrication is reported of highly electrochemically active Ti(3)C(2)Tx MXene/MWCNT (3D/1D)-modified screen-printed carbon electrode (SPE) for the efficient simultaneous electrochemical detection of paracetamol, theophylline, and caffeine in human blood samples. 3D/1D Ti(3)C(2)Tx MXene/MWCNT nanocomposite was synthesized using microwave irradiation and ultrasonication processes. Then, the Ti(3)C(2)Tx/MWCNT-modified SPE electrode was fabricated and thoroughly characterized towards its physicochemical and electrochemical properties using XPS, TEM, FESEM, XRD, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, cyclic voltammetry, and differential pulse voltammetry techniques. As-constructed Ti(3)C(2)Tx-MWCNT/SPE offers excellent electrochemical sensing performance with good detection limits (0.23, 0.57, and 0.43 mu M) and wide linear ranges (1.0 similar to 90.1, 2.0 similar to 62.0, and 2.0-90.9 mu M) for paracetamol, caffeine, and theophylline, respectively, in the human samples. Notably, the non-enzymatic electroactive nanocomposite-modified electrode has depicted a semicircle Nyquist plot with low charge transfer resistance (R-ct similar to 95 Omega), leading to high ionic diffusion and facilitating an excellent electron transfer path. All the above results in efficient stability, reproducibility, repeatability, and sensitivity compared with other reported works, and thus, it claims its practical utilization in realistic clinical applications.