Green synthesis of copper oxide nanoparticles using Ficus elastica extract for the electrochemical simultaneous detection of Cd(2+), Pb(2+), and Hg(2+)

In this paper, for the first time, we report the use of a new carbon paste electrode based on a low-cost pencil graphite powder modified with polyaniline (PANI) and green synthesized copper oxide nanoparticles using Ficus elastica extract as a sensor for Cd(2+), Pb(2+), and Hg(2+). The elaborated electrode was characterized by FT-IR spectroscopy, field-emission gun scanning electron microscopy (FEG-SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and simultaneous thermal analysis (TGA/DSC). The electrochemical behavior of the sensor was evaluated using cyclic voltammetry (CV) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy techniques. According to CV, as well as square wave voltammetry (SWV) results, it was found that the CuONPs/PANI–CPE sensor was able to determine very low concentrations of Cd(2+), Pb(2+), and Hg(2+) in HCl (0.01 M) either in single metal or in multi-metal solutions with a high sensitivity. Furthermore, Cd(2+), Pb(2+), and Hg(2+) simultaneous detection on CuONPs/PANI–CPE achieved very low limits of detection (0.11, 0.16, and 0.07 μg L(−1), respectively). Besides, the designed sensor displayed a good selectivity, reproducibility, and stability. Moreover, CuONPs/PANI–CPE enabled us to determine with high accuracy Cd(2+), Pb(2+), and Hg(2+) traces in environmental matrices.