A Copper-Based Metal-Organic Framework/Molecularly Imprinted Polymer-Modified Graphite Epoxy Composite Electrode for the Electrochemical Detection of Chlorpyrifos and Investigating Optimum Conditions with the aid of Quantum-Mechanical DFT Calculations

In this study, a new electrochemical sensor using MIPs coated on the surface of Cu-MOF was developed for the selective determination of chlorpyrifos (CPF). Cu-MOF (HKUST-1) was synthesized based on a solvothermal method. Molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) were prepared using chlorpyrifos as the template molecule, methacrylic acid as the functional monomer, and ethylene glycol dimethyacrylate as the cross-linker. The optimum pH value of the rebinding solution was verified with computational calculations obtained by Gaussian software. The HKUST-1@MIP was characterized by several techniques, including Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), and X-ray diffraction (XRD). HKUST-1@MIP/GEC electrode showed an excellent linear range of 0.01 to 1.00 mu M, with RSD% and LOD of 5.37% and 3 nM, respectively. The modified electrode presents a simple, selective, sensitive, stable, and environmentally friendly strategy for the determination of CPF. The proposed method was successfully used to measure CPF in apple and tomato samples.