Highly activated screen-printed carbon electrodes by electrochemical treatment with hydrogen peroxide

Abstract

An easy effective method for the activation of commercial screen-printed carbon electrodes (SPCEs) using H2O2 is presented to enhance sensing performances of carbon ink. Electrochemical activation consists of 25 repetitive voltammetric cycles at 10 mV s−1 using 10 mM H2O2 in phosphate buffer (pH 7). This treatment allowed us to reach a sensitivity of 0.24 ± 0.01 μA μM−1 cm−2 for the electroanalysis of H2O2, which is 140-fold higher than that of untreated SPCEs and 6-fold more than screen-printed platinum electrodes (SPPtEs). Electrode surface properties were characterized by SEM, EIS and XPS. The results revealed atomic level changes at the electrode surface, with the introduction of new carbon‑oxygen groups being responsible for improved electro-transfer properties and sensitivity. Our method was compared with other previously described ones. The methodology is promising for the activation of commercial carbon inks-based electrodes for sensor applications.