A Novel Potentiometric Ni2+-Sensor based on a Ni2+ Ion-Imprinted Polymer

A novel Ni2+ ion-imprinted polymer (IIP) was synthesized through a precipitation polymerization technique using itaconic acid (as functional monomer) and ethylene glycol dimethacrylate (as cross-linking agent). NIP was next used to construct a Ni2+ ion-selective membrane electrode through dispersing its particles in a poly (vinyl chloride)(PVC) based membrane plasticized with dibutylphthalate. The electrode revealed a Nernstian response of 24.2±0.5 mV decade-1 to Ni2+ from 1.0×10-5 to 1.0×10-1 mol L-1 and had a lower detection limit of 5.0×10-6 mol L-1. A control electrode based on non-imprinted polymer (NIP) was also prepared and evaluated, and found to be insensitive to the analyte ions in aqueous media. The satisfactory qualities of the developed IIP sensor make it a suitable candidate for the determination of Ni2+ ions.