N-Doped TiO 2 –Carbon Composites Derived from NH 2 -MIL-125(Ti) for Electrochemical Determination of tert-Butylhydroquinone

Electrochemical determination of tert-butylhydroquinone (TBHQ) is vital to food safety due to negative health effects; however, bare electrode of traditional electrochemical sensors generally has a narrow linear range and low sensitivity, limiting their practical application. Accordingly, the nano-architecture fabricated with N-doped TiO 2 –carbon nano-composites (TiO 2 /NC) is prepared by the thermolysis of NH 2 functionalized MIL-125(Ti) metal–organic frameworks (NH 2 -MIL-125(Ti)). TiO 2 /NC composites are firstly developed as the electrochemical material for electrochemical determination of TBHQ. The TiO 2 /NC composites with a highly porous structure, excellent conductivity and electron transportation, and large surface area show remarkable electrochemical oxidation ability for TBHQ. Under optimal conditions, TiO 2 /NC composite-modified electrode presents a broader linear response to TBHQ concentration of 0.05–100 μM with the detection limit as low as 4 nM (S/N = 3). Finally, the sensor platform is implemented directly to determine TBHQ in edible oil for evaluation of its practical application. TiO 2 /NC composites sensor fabricated perform larger linear range with high sensitivity and anti-interference properties, which can be used as a potential for electrochemical determination of TBHQ.