A new electrochemical sensor based on task-specific ionic liquids-modified palm shell activated carbon for the determination of mercury in water samples

Abstract

In this study, a potentiometric sensor composed of palm shell activated carbon modified with trioctylmethylammonium thiosalicylate (TOMATS) was used for the potentiometric determination of mercury ions in water samples. The proposed potentiometric sensor has good operating characteristics towards Hg (II), including a relatively high selectivity; a Nernstian response to Hg (II) ions in a concentration range of 1.0 × 10 -9 to 1.0 × 10 -2 M, with a detection limit of 1 × 10 -10 M and a slope of 44.08 ± 1.0 mV/decade; and a fast response time (~5 s). No significant changes in electrode potential were observed when the pH was varied over the range of 3-9. Additionally, the proposed electrode was characterized by good selectivity towards Hg (II) and no significant interferences from other cationic or anionic species. © 2014 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.