Development of a selective and sensitive voltammetric sensor for propylparaben based on a nanosized molecularly imprinted polymer–carbon paste electrode

The design and construction of a selective voltammetric sensor for propylparaben (PP) in cosmetics by using a molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) as recognition element was introduced. The MIP was synthesized by using PP as template and methacrylic acid as functional monomer and then incorporated in the carbon paste electrode as PP sensor. The molecularly imprinted polymer–carbon paste electrode (MIP–CPE) showed very high recognition ability in comparison to non-imprinted polymer–carbon paste electrode (NIP–CPE). It was shown that electrode washing after PP extraction, led to enhanced selectivity, without noticeably decreasing the sensitivity. Some parameters affecting sensor response were optimized, and a calibration curve was then plotted using differential pulse voltammetric (DPV) technique. A dynamic linear range of 1 nM to 100 nM was obtained. The detection limit of the sensor was calculated to be equal to 0.32 nM. The imprinted electrode also displayed good selectivity for PP and selectivity coefficients were 2.29 and 1.66 for methylparaben (MP) and ethylparaben (EP) respectively. Structural analogs, such as phenol and p-hydroxybenzoic acid had almost no response. This sensor was used successfully for propylparaben determination in cosmetic sample.