Facile construction of binary metal oxide heterojunction with hexagonal boron nitride nanohybrid electrocatalyst for the detection of flutamide

Abstract

Background

Flutamide (FU) is a potential anti-androgen drug significantly prescribed to all human beings. The high solubility and poor degradability of its metabolites can adversely affect the balance of the ecosystem. Therefore, developing an efficient and reliable technique to detect this pollutant is essential. Consequently, electrochemical sensors have been widely used for the monitoring of various real-world samples.

Methods

Hence, nickel-zinc oxide (NZO) with hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) nanocomposite was prepared as a proficient electrocatalyst in FU detection. Several spectroscopic measurements were carried out to characterize the prepared materials. Our NZO/h-BN nanocomposite was utilized to modify the glassy carbon electrode (GCE) and its relative catalytic activity was scrutinized with impedance and various voltammetric techniques.

Significant findings

Based on the results, our NZO/h-BN/GCE sensor exhibited high conductance, appreciable linear ranges, low detection limit (0.002 μM), optimal sensitivity (2.149 µA µM⁻¹ cm⁻²), and high selectivity with good repeatability, and reproducibility results. Furthermore, the practical utility of the sensor was studied by monitoring FU in human and environmental samples. Based on the outcomes, our NZO/h-BN/GCE is a promising electrochemical platform for the detection of FU.