Abstract
The aim of our work was to investigate practical and robust methods for the electrochemical analysis of DNT. Using gold WEs, we differentiated between the nitro substituents in 2,4- and 2,6-DNT in organic electrolyte systems. Switching to an aqueous electrolyte (2 M H2SO4), a limit of detection (LOD) of 0.158 ppm (0.87 μM) and a limit of quantitation (LOQ) of 0.48 ppm (2.64 μM) were observed for 2,4-DNT. Subsequent simplification to wooden craft pencils as WEs in aqueous 2 M H2SO4 electrolyte achieved a LOD of 4.8 ppm (26.48 μM) and a LOQ of 14.6 ppm (80.54 μM) for 2,4-DNT. Alongside this easily renewable WE choice, 2 M H2SO4 was found to improve the solubility of DNT in aqueous media and has not been previously reported as an electrolyte in DNT electroanalysis. On testing a range of pencil grades from 4H to 8B, it was found that 4B gave the best sensitivity. The work serves as a preliminary study into materials that, through their simplicity and availability, may be suitable for the development of a robust and portable instrumental method through the electrochemical work presented here.
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